Oppai Dragon - Road to Being King
by Poodicus
Summary: [AU Post-Volume 18 Light Novel] Nearly a half a year has passed since Rizevim Lucifer was defeated, and the members of the anti-terrorist team known as DxD are finally able to begin settling down again. Unfortunately, peace doesn't always last, as a new threat looms on the horizon. (Longer Synopsis Inside) R&R, Rated M for Violence, Gore, Sexual Themes, Cursing
1. Volume 1, Life 1

_**After defeating the being known Rizevim Lucifer, and removing what was left of the Khaos Brigade, the members of the counter-terrorist group known as 'DxD' thought that they would get a well-deserved break for their efforts.**_

_**Unfortunately, not all plans fall in place, as an ancient organization rises once again. They are here to eradicate the evils that plague the world of man, just like before, and to bring Heaven to its former glory.**_

_**Can Issei and his friends fight this new group and bring peace back to the world once again? Will he ever be able to live out his dream of creating his very own harem? **_

_**Non nobis, non nobis, Domine**_**  
><strong>_**Sed nomini tuo da gloriam.**_

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><p><strong>[SKIPPABLE]<strong>

**Hello guys and gals, it's been a while. If you don't want to read an Author's Note, then skip on down the story. If you don't care, then stick right as I'm here to say that I've been getting back into reading fanfics, and I've been wanting to create my own once again, hopefully actually sticking through it. I'm not entirely sure what this entire series will be about, but thinking of creating series within a series if that makes any sense. In other words, I'll be creating 'volumes' of this fanfic, which shall be the different series, or 'stories' as you might like to call them, which shall be rated M for more mature themes than the actual story, as I feel it to be more flexible to work with.**

**I'd also like to thank the users of the Animesuki "Highschool DxD" Social Group for helping me out with this, along with the user Naughty_Ranko. Thank you so much you guys for helping me correct things that I would have otherwise missed!**

**Anyways, for what this **_**particular**_** story is about, I got inspiration from reading a bit of a certain fanfic, which, to be honest, had potential, though I **_**personally**_** believe it should have gone differently. Because of this, you'll probably be seeing some of the same elements if you've read that fic as well (for the sake of privacy and flaming-possibilities, I won't be naming said fic). Probably some straight-up carbon copy stuff, but more than likely other than the very beginning, probably not.**

**Basically this series will be taking place after the 'Rizevim Lucifer' arc taking place in the light novel, so there may be spoilers/speculations that I'll be writing down. Also, some things may not make sense for those who have only watched the anime, which is why I suggest you go read the light novel at "Baka-Tsuki dot org", of course, replacing the 'dot' with a period and getting rid of the spaces in-between.**

**I probably won't be describing the characters at all since, well, it may be lazy on my part, but if you're reading this story, then even if you've only watched the anime, you should be able to know who **_**most**_** of the characters are and what they look like (you shouldn't do this, btw, if you're a writer).**

**I guess I should also note that I don't own anything, as I'm just a poor fanfic writer, and that this is **_**just**_** a fanfic. What happens in the actual light novel could be entirely different, in fact, probably 99.9999999% chance of it being different. That, and forgive me if I end up getting the characters OOC, but I'll try my best to keep them the same characters we all know and love.**

**Anyways, on with the show!**

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><p><em><strong>Volume 1; Life 1<strong>_

Alone in a small, dimly-lit room sat a young man on a stool. He stared into space as he recalled the events of the past year of his life, swirling the ice cubes of the water-filled shot glass before him and reading the dirty magazine that sat open in front of him. He thought of the good times and of the bad, of the best and of the worst. But, what of now?

Shortly after New Year's, this young man—nay—this young _devil_, managed to defeat someone to be considered one of the strongest beings in the world due to the help of his fellow friends and comrades. Some of the villains had gotten away, but the big baddy himself had been killed. His already-famous name would spread even further than it had, telling of the heroic deeds he had done once again. As such, in reward for his services, and for the services done by his comrades, he and two others were to be promoted in the Society of Devils. They were to be given the ranking of "High-Class Devil".

He, Issei Hyoudou, the Crimson Dragon Emperor, had gotten one step closer to achieving his lifelong dream, which was to have a harem. The more he thought about it though, the more realized he had already gotten that which he dreamed of having.

Over a dozen girls, ranging from mere fan girls of the hit television show in the Underworld known as "Oppai Dragon", to potential lovers, he had them all. Yet, he had felt like he had not earned it all himself. He felt like they had all gone to him—that he hadn't attracted them using his own methods. No, his dream was still far from realized. While he had many girls he enjoyed being with already, he had only filled out two of the fifteen potential spots in the peerage he had been given.

The Evil Pieces system. Based on the sixteen pieces in Chess, one could potentially fill all fifteen pieces (besides the King Piece, which was taken by the High-Class Devil) with weak minions, and yet, live out their lives without ever having to use those pieces in battle. That was what he wanted. He had wanted to be like a man he had once hated and admired at the same time. A man who had surrounded himself by gorgeous women and who would follow his every command. A man whom Issei had once held a deep jealousy for.

'_Yes!_' He decided, jumping up from his seat. He would do it! He would create his dream harem, whatever it took! Now all he had to do was explain his decision to his future wife, as well as his manager, about who he had thought about making his Queen. Upon thinking of the former, though, he immediately crumpled back down to his seat, tears forming at the corners of his eyes, as he remembered the night he had been told he had been engaged. It had only been a week, and yet it felt so long ago.

He had been watching the newest release of the television show based off him, along with his present girlfriend at the time. They had been inside their bedroom, all alone, feeling comfortable with one another. Cuddling up next to him, wearing her evening see-through gown, her crimson hair draped across her voluptuous body and breasts that stuck out in front of her as if she had been proud of them, which one could easily say she was. Knowing her man, she rubbed up against him, teasing him as he slowly became aroused at the scent of the perfume she had been wearing that evening, and pressing her breast against his arm. Becoming nervous, and almost feeling like he was going to satisfy her if she kept it up, the young man had begun to sweat, thinking of mathematical formulas to calm his nerves.

"Hey, Ise," she called out in a sultry voice, blowing into his ear to further tease him, and perhaps, expecting him to jump on her and finally make her night.

"Y-Yes, Rias?" he replied back, stuttering as he felt her trying to see how far his limits went. His condition only worsened, letting out a small yelp as she placed her hand onto his inner thigh, rubbing his inner leg as though she was about to do something to 'Little Issei'.

Honestly, she could see how her best friend and rival for Ise's love could enjoy teasing the boy so much. He had let out the cutest moans as she lightly nibbled on his earlobe, gaining more reactions from him, her palm finally reaching his groin as she tried to motivate him further. "How long have we known each other, Ise?"

"A-a-ah-ahh, please don't—!" he pleaded as he grabbed hold of her hand, almost pleading for his sanity's sake to not do this. "I-I t-think-! I think over a year now!"

"Only a year? And yet it seems so long ago…"

Her tone changed to become more serious as she took her hand off his groin. She looked at him with eyes filled with guilt, and with shame. "Ise," she called out, pleading for him to make the pain go away—a pain that the boy wouldn't… _couldn't_ understand.

"Y-yes, Rias?"

He did not know what was wrong, but he could see it. He could see the inner torment that plagued her. When he saw it, though, he saw tragic memories of his own—memories that he wished he'd forget already.

"Do you trust me, Ise?"

Frowning, he already knew the answer. "Of course I do, Rias. I trust you more than anyone else in the world," he answered with sincerity.

"More than Asia? Than Akeno? Than Koneko?"

"Yes, yes, and yes," he answered immediately, not even needing to think about the answers. When it became evident that the answers didn't please her though, he truly began to worry. "What is this about Rias? One minute you're, well, feisty, and the next, you're…" He trailed off, not knowing what to say. He hadn't needed to say anything, as the girl looked away, ashamed for what she knew.

"I haven't been entirely honest with you, Issei."

Dread suddenly filled the young man, memories of his past once again cropping up of the first girl he had loved, and who had betrayed him as she left him in his own puddle of blood. "What… what do you mean? How have you not been honest with me?"

"Ise. Do you remember, the night you saved me? The night when I thought my life was forever owned by Raiser? How you had burst into the main hall of the reception, screaming at the top of your lungs that you would be the one who would take my virginity?" She chuckled at the last part, cheeks becoming red as she remembered the incident clear as day. Fond memories indeed, but as her giggling died down, her tone had once again become serious. "Do you remember, Ise?"

"Of course I do," he answered, proud of the moment. That proud feeling would only last a moment, as he could feel the dread that filled her words. "Why are you asking me this, though? Don't tell me—don't tell me you were still engaged to that guy!" he exclaimed, sadly remembering the untimely death of the young Phoenix devil. His little sister, Ravel Phoenix, and Issei's first Bishop, had broken down into tears and sobbed uncontrollably when she had received the news that late winter night.

He had fallen in battle during a Rating Game, against the reigning champion. For an Immortal Phoenix that dominated the younger Rating Games such as himself to have been killed in battle, the bigger shock came from the one who defeated him. The champion of the games and beloved by all, Emperor Belial, announced his allegiance to Rizevim Lucifer and challenged the Devil Kings. It would soon after that the Immortal Phoenix would have his revenge though, as the Emperor would later be held on trial after being captured by the anti-terrorist group DxD, and subsequently executed for his crimes against the Underworld, very much shocking the very foundation of the Rating Games.

Still, as much as he felt bad for the passed soul, Issei could not forgive those who would have brought misery for his girlfriend. This didn't seem the case, however, as she began to giggle once more.

"No, no, of course not," Rias explained, trying to calm herself as she felt relieved at how angry Issei would get for her. She knew he truly loved her. "No, it's just- It's true that you won me my freedom against Raiser, but I suppose I should say that an engagement of some kind still had to be made… Ise, why do you think my brother, my father, and my mother all like you so much? Why do you think they let you so close to me? Even going as far as letting you ask me out?"

While he didn't know it, the girl had been dropping hints for him, hoping that he would pick up on the thing she didn't want to say. She felt that in a way, while her freedom had been won that night, Issei's imprisonment had only just begun.

"I, I don't know Rias. I don't know why they would let me do all that." He answered truthfully. "If you're still engaged though…"

"Yes…?"

"Does that mean you're engaged to Sairaorg instead?!"

Rias stared blankly at her loved one for a moment, contemplating the answer she had been given, shortly before letting out a massive sigh. It turned out he truly didn't understand at all. Still, she couldn't get _too_ mad at him. After all, he was her adorable little Issei. "No, I'm not engaged to Sairaorg, Ise. I'm engaged to… you…"

Rias held her breath as she finally managed to tell the boy the truth, hoping to her brother that he took it well. When he said nothing after a few moments though, simply staring at her with disbelief in his eyes, she began to worry. "I, I'm so, so sorry, Issei. The truth is, when you defeated Raiser, my brother believed that because a Dragon had defeated the Phoenix, that a Dragon would be a better suitor for the power of Destruction. I wanted our relationship to progress normally like it has so far, but I had received a letter from Grayfia telling me that the preparations were beginning to complete, and that the wedding itself would take place next year after you graduate. I truly wanted to tell you-"

"I'm getting married to Rias."

That simple phrase caught the girl off-guard, as it had been the first thing the boy had said since being told he was to be married to the girl of his dreams. And instead of throwing a fit or getting angry for being lied to this entire time, the young man's lips were being tugged at the corners, a smirk slowly appearing on his face.

"I'm getting married to Rias." He said again, his grin growing bigger with each saying. "I'm getting married to Rias. I'm getting married to Rias!"

He jumped up from the makeshift sitting position he had been in this entire time, happy to be alive at that moment. "I'm getting married to Rias! I'm getting married to Rias! I'm getting married to-! Rias!"

Amongst his jumping up and down in excitement, he had almost forgotten the girl he had been engaged to, and looked down at her on the ground, thoroughly confused. "Rias!" He exclaimed again, suddenly picking her up from her seat and holding her bridal-style. She had let out a yelp of surprise, only for that yelp to turn into laughter as Issei began to spin around the room, Rias in arms, and continued to call out the words he thought he'd never say in a million years. "I'm getting married to Rias! I'm getting married to Rias!"

As he continued to spin and spin, he eventually lost his footing, and the two tumbled down onto the bed, both laughing in joy at the celebratory news. The two had eventually settled down, and began to look into each other's eyes, enjoying every moment of being together.

"Rias…" Issei said calmly, scooching closer to the love of his life. "I'm so happy, Rias. I never thought this day would come!"

"Neither had I, Issei." She replied, her voice breaking as tears formed in the corner of her eyes, happily falling from her cheeks. "I'm sorry for keeping it secret for so long, but I thought if I did-"

"I would be upset? How could I be?" He asked, clearly ecstatic at the situation. "It's only been my dream for the past year for something like this to happen… Well, besides _that_." He emphasized absentmindedly. What he hadn't been expecting though, was her answer to it, or an answer at all.

"… Do you want to do it?"

Having thought he had heard her wrong, Issei's eyes went wide as he sat up in a more appropriate posture. "W-What?" He asked, hoping he hadn't heard it wrong.

"Do you, want to, do _it_." She asked again, smiling widely. She too had been dreaming of an appropriate time to consummate their love. She also knew the other girls who lived with them in the mansion would more than likely try to sabotage any attempt for her to do it with Issei, she thought that now was better than any other time.

As if he had been wanting to hear that his entire life, Issei screamed out the word 'Yes!' as he dove onto her, making sure not to hurt her in any way, before digging into the meal that was to be laid out in front of him. Once again, Rias screamed and giggled out of excitement as Issei began to slowly caress her body and begin to kiss on sensitive spots that had been vulnerable to him.

Unfortunately, the two wouldn't get too far, as shortly after getting her consent, Issei heard the horror of the door to the bedroom being opened up. The one who stood there, was the blonde-haired former-nun of the Catholic Church, Asia Argento, getting ready for bed.

When she saw the two on the bed, it took her mind a second to recognize and realize what was about to begin. In response, she took off her pajama shirt and demanded to be involved. Sadly, due to her interference, Issei would have to wait for another day to come to finally realize his dream of losing his virginity, as Rias didn't think it was too appropriate for Asia to get involved. Well, that, and the fact that she didn't want anybody else to be a part of a very special moment that should have only be her and her lover. Issei, understandably, would be a bit disappointed in the turn of the events though.

"At least you're birthday isn't too far away."

Those words said by his master and now fiancée made his eyes pour, his goal had once again been so close, yet so far away. And while he was happy the promise from his future partner to give him the ultimate present for his birthday, it still saddened him a bit that he would have to wait once again. Still, that wasn't here nor there at the moment, as right now, he needed to find Rias and Ravel, and tell them of the choice he made.

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><p>After finally searching within the six-story house for half an hour, Issei had managed to reach the door to his bedroom, where the girls he had been looking for had been inside. Both, including some of the other girls that had lived with him and had loved him, were playing games and having general fun without him. With a deep breath, he grabbed the handle, ready to open the door and walk inside.<p>

"You can do this, Issei." He muttered to himself. He told himself that, yet, his hand had refused to turn the knob.

[If you're going to do it, then the first thing you need to do is open the door, partner.]

'_I-I know that, Ddraig! I, I was just preparing myself, that's all!_'

[Preparing yourself for what? All you need to do is open the door and tell them what you think. There isn't any preparing needed!]

'_Shut up!_' He scolded the dragon inside his arm. Though the two entities had grown close and had begun to understand one another, they also knew how to get on each other's nerves. '_You don't know what it's like, Ddraig. If I've made the wrong choice, I'll never hear the end of it! My chances of making my dream harem will vanish!_'

The dragon let out an exhale of annoyance. He couldn't help but think that his partner was always worried about the dumbest things. [Well, you won't know until you go tell them, now will you?]

Issei could only grumble at himself, as once again, his partner had been correct. If he didn't go through with it now, chances would be he would never get it done. Without a second thought, he turned the knob of the door, and opened it wide.

Once he opened the door, the attention of everyone inside had turned to him. A chill went down his spine as their gazes turned to him. It was as if they had created some weird, creepy, synchronized stare without even realizing it. He did love them, and he knew they loved him back, but it was still a bit unnerving.

"Girls…"

He announced his presence as he stepped inside the room, closing the door behind him, as the girls focused their attention away from the door and went back to playing their games. With a spot free on the massive bed he shared with his future wife, he walked on over to it and sat down next to his number three, and fiancée's Queen, Akeno Himejima. Her silky black hair and smooth pale skin was enough to entice any strong-willed man, but it would be her suggestive body and the seductive tone she spoke with that would make them go crazy for her.

"Ara? It seems Issei has come to play with us." She spoke as she brushed up against the boy. The black sakura-printed yukata she had been accustomed to wearing lately was slowly slipping off her body, the sash holding it loosening up as she sneakily tugged on it.

Having scanned the room seconds before, Issei had seen his Bishop amongst the crowd, her blonde drill-like hair sticking out like a sore thumb. The other person he needed though, hadn't been there. "Akeno," He answered with the best of his ability. It took everything he had to try to focus on something else other than the breasts that could slip out of that yukata at any moment. "You wouldn't happen to know where Rias would be, would you?" He gulped, averting his eyes to the other corner of the room.

"It's rude to not look at a lady when speaking to them, Ise." She teased him, pressing her body further as her breasts enveloped his right arm, and placing tender hand on his thigh. "As for Rias, afraid she'll walk in on us?"

"Y-You wouldn't really do anything, not when the other girls are here, would you?"

The other girls though, as if knowing nothing was going to happen, continued to ignore what had been going on in the bed. "Would you like to find out? Ufufu." She whispered and giggled into his ear.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Akeno. You know what happened when Rias found out about Issei's first kiss, don't you?" Xenovia pointed out before anything more could happen. When she said though, the angel and her close friend to her left, Irina, suddenly became tense. Xenovia simply went back to focusing on the racing game she was playing on the television.

"And you would stop me, Xenovia?"

Xenovia shrugged, not breaking her attention away from the television. "Since Rias has permitted me to be traded to Issei as his Knight, I suppose it should be my duty to protect him from unwanted trouble."

Irina, who was still a bit red from remembering the mayhem that had occurred due to her actions, ended up pouting, her cheeks puffing out as Xenovia announced her being traded away. "Why is it that you and Asia get to be with Ise while I have to stay on the sidelines?"

"Because you chose the life of an angel instead of a devil? I'm sure Issei would be more than happy to change that, though." Xenovia answered with a smug grin. The reaction from Irina made it all the worthwhile too, as the angel-girl had to begin thinking of holy things as her mind became corrupted by the words of her friend. Images of her and the boy, together and alone, joining and becoming one to make her fall went through her mind as her angel wings flickered between white and black.

"U-Um, Ise?" Asia called out, ignoring her other two friends as she turned towards the only male in the room. Her familiar, Rassei, had been sitting on top of her head, the blue whelping as comfortable as he could be. "I think Rias went to the bathroom to get ready for bed."

"I see. Thank you Asia."

Glancing at the nearby clock on the end-table, he could indeed see that it had become late in the evening, and with a new semester of school coming up, they would all have to get to bed fairly soon. It would be the first day of school he would attend without his master.

Watching two of the Church Trio play some more games on the television, Issei had begun to formulate what he would say to the two girls. With heavy thinking, he missed the clicking sound of the door to the bedroom opening up to reveal his love, dressed in her nightly see-through gown and lingerie panties for comfort. Of course, this was simply all for show, as she often preferred to sleep next to Issei in the nude.

"There you are," was the first comment she made as she entered the room, her gaze turning to Issei. "I was looking for you for the past couple of minutes. I thought you had been down in the new barroom that's opened up."

'_Looking for me?_' He had thought. He would have to ask later about it though, as for now, he had a goal in mind he needed to finish. "Actually, I came up here because-"

"He wanted to see you, of course." Akeno finished for him. "I must say though, if you leave him alone for _too_ long Rias, one of us just might end up gobbling him up." She said with a wink, giving the boy a teasing nibble on his exposed neck as if to say she meant it literally, drapping her arms around the boy.

"So I've heard…"

Ignoring the teasing coming from her best friend, the crimson-haired devil sat down on the other side of her man, rubbing up against him to assert her authority over him against the shrine maiden. "And I'll have _you_ know, Akeno, that if you dare lay a hand on my Ise-!" She said no words, only her hand glowed with unholy power to show how serious she was.

Issei could only sigh internally. Just what he needed, another catfight over him. While it would have excited him in the past, a part of him _now_ just felt that such a thing, as adorable it was and welcomed it, he loved all of them, and having catfights over him only meant that the girls themselves didn't get along with one another. How can one have a harem if the girls don't get along?

He decided to wait. Wait until the fight was over, and until the girls would begin to leave to finally tell them of what he thought.

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><p>It took far longer than it should have.<p>

What should have taken only a few seconds, a few minutes at most, ended up going on for fifteen minutes. The girls bickering about who deserved Issei more, the debate only became more intense and passionate as the other girls within the room began to make their claims as well. Once again, Issei could only sigh internally as the dragon he called 'partner' laughed at the boy's misfortune, claiming that it was in good fun.

'_You probably feel that this is payback for the _'_**Oppai Dragon**_'_ title, don't you?_'

[_A bit_.] His partner responded truthfully. [_But I also find it amusing because of the fact that you had asked for a harem, that it was your ultimate dream. Well, this is simply the beginning of such things_.]

Though the dragon was correct in what he was saying, Issei wasn't able to make a counterargument to the dragon's statement. His King had gotten fed up with the disagreement, and wanted to make it loud and clear that Issei's was hers first and foremost.

"Issei is my Pawn, and therefore, he is mine! I dare for any of you to try to take that away from me!"

Most of the girls, while they all did love Issei in their own way, couldn't argue at the fact that technically speaking, Issei _was_ Rias' servant due to the Evil Piece system. They began to calm down finally, not wanting to come up with an excuse to continue fighting if Rias was going to pull the 'King' card. One girl though did no such thing.

"If needing to be his King is all it takes to make Issei yours, then perhaps I _should_ challenge you, Rias."

Rias glared at her best friend, and the black-haired beauty began to laugh behind her hand, enjoying at seeing her friend riled up like this. She had also been semi-serious about making the boy her Pawn as well though.

"You seem to forget, Akeno. While you may have gotten your own pieces not that long ago, Issei himself not only takes up all eight Pawn pieces, but **four **of them are Mutation Pieces!" Rias said confidently, a conceited smirk apparent on her features.

"Is this how you wished to be treated, Issei?" Akeno asked the boy as she got closer to him, if only to make the red-haired King even more upset. "To be looked at only as a Pawn? Come with me, and I can guarantee you that you will forget about the mean, old witch soon enough." She ended as she gave him a lick along his neck, sending shivers down the boy's spine as she stroked his chin with her hand. "Come with me, and you can play with me all night long, every night. What do you say, Queen? Ufufu."

The girl pulled out her own Queen piece, a piece that hadn't been taken by anybody yet, and unlike the normal Evil Pieces, glowed a bright, crimson-red to show off the capabilities it could hold. It was a Mutation Piece, and because it was a Queen piece, meant that it was worth than the four Pawn pieces that Issei currently held within his body.

It would have been a lie to say that Issei hadn't seriously thought about it, even it was for only a few seconds. While it would have been heaven for him to be able to play around with the beautiful Queen every night and become her servant, the aura that had been building up behind him, an aura that absolutely scared him, told him that it hadn't been such a great idea in the end.

"A-ke-no-"

Fury was building on Rias' face as she looked towards her Queen and her motivations. Brow twitching in anger, she cracked her knuckles, ready to send her best friend to the next life if it meant Issei would stay with her.

She wouldn't have gotten a chance to do so though, as Issei bounced up off the bed and put his arms in front of the two girls, trying to separate the two and calm them down. "W-Wait! Wait a minute! This isn't right! I love you both, and-!" He ceased talking as the squishy feeling in both his palms told him that in any normal circumstance would result with him having a great big slap mark on both his cheeks. "… I-It was an accident?"

"I-Issei!"

"Ara ara."

Both girls, having forgotten the previous moment due to this, still had red tinges in their own cheeks for entirely different reasons.

Rias had been the first one to pry away from Issei's grasp as she swatted away the hand, covering her breasts as she turned away, embarrassed for once that the boy grabbed her like that. "You said you would wait until your birthday. Geez…" She muttered with pouted lips. After all, they had agreed to hold off any sexual activity to themselves or others, if only to try to make the night of his birthday more enjoyable and enticing. It had also been part of the reason why the boy had been sulking down in the barroom, being the horny and healthy young male as he was.

Akeno on the other hand was more than happy for Issei's sudden grab. Placing her own hand on top of his, she began to move it around in a circular motion as to attract the boy. While she could feel herself becoming disturbed by the motion of her breast, she could also see that the boy himself was becoming excited as well. "Let's take this into another room, shall we?"

"I-I-I-I-"

"Enough!"

Rias pulled the boy away from her Queen, getting tired of the constant teases and advances on her fiancée. She threw him onto the bed before going back to yell at Akeno some more. "_We_ are going to sleep, _now_! Tomorrow is the beginning of the new semester, and I'll be damned if Issei is late for his first day of being a third year!" She said as she pointed towards the door, demanding that all girls leave the room.

Most of the girls were more than happy to leave, if only to avoid the oncoming battlefield should the situation escalate any further. Each one had said goodnight to the two, saying they would see them both tomorrow and such before finally leaving the room. Akeno had also been forced to admit defeat as the King had a point, saying her own special goodbye to the boy, promising to further their discussion another time if only to try to rile Rias up some more. There had been two that didn't leave the room once the last one was out and dared to continue making the girl upset.

Rias continued to point her finger at the door, but Asia spoke up, sniffling a bit at the thought of having to leave. "Do, do I really have to, Rias?" She asked with water-filled eyes. The dragon lying on top of her could only growl at the big-breasted King for daring to make its master cry.

Giving into the girl's pressure, Rias dropped her finger, putting her other hand on forehead as she rubbed it, trying to calm herself down. "No, Asia, you don't have to leave…" She said as she looked back up to see the girl do a one-eighty and became greatly appreciative of being allowed to sleep in the same bed as she always had. "And you?" She asked as she looked towards the other, Ravel.

She shrugged. "I am his Bishop. Am I not allowed to sleep with my master?"

"No, you're not." Rias immediately shot down.

"A-Actually…"

"Ise!" Rias snapped as she turned back to her Pawn, ready to scold him more for his decision.

"I-I simply need to talk to you and Ravel for a few minutes, that's all! I swear, I wasn't trying to convince you to have her stay at all!" '_Though it would have been incredibly nice to have her petite body snuggling up to mine._' He thought to himself at the end, thinking of all the ecchi things he wanted to do to the Bishop.

Unexpectedly, his betrothed seemed to do a one-eighty herself as a smirk, barely visible on her face, made itself apparent at the satisfactory answer. His Bishop only pouted, feeling the exact opposite at the same thing. "Asia? Do you mind getting ready for bed? This shouldn't take too long." Issei asked the girl. She tilted her at him in confusion, surprised that he would ask for such a thing.

For a moment, the pure girl could only think that he wanted to be alone with them to do something dirty with them, as it had his nature to do something like that, but she quickly shook that hallucination away. "I understand, Ise. I'll be back in a few." She said as she bowed at the doorway, leaving the two girls and boy alone.

Settling into the bed, the two girls sat down side-by-side to the boy who had straightened himself out and sat in the middle, readying himself to speak.

Rias was the first to start. "Before we begin, Ise, I'd like to tell you something."

"Hmm?" Issei answered, thinking of how she had said she wanted to talk to him. It only made sense to do it now.

"Grayfia called earlier, she… She got me to talk about the engagement…"

Though he wasn't sure why his master was so nervous, he could only allow her to talk. "Go on."

"Well… I kind of… told her about what happened afterwards…" She admitted shyly. It wasn't exactly her proudest moment.

He knew immediately what she was talking about. "Oh, uh…"

"Brother offered to set-up locks on all the doors, for more privacy."

"I see. I suppose that's a good idea." He said, acknowledging the idea. Indeed, it meant the chances of someone barging in on something important was going to be far more unlikely. Perhaps he could finally be alone with one of the girls!

"Yes… So, what is it you wanted to talk to us about?" Rias asked. Though she hated the idea of having locks on all the doors, she hated the idea of Issei having access to all of them more, something which she refused to tell the boy.

Back to what he wanted to talk about though, she wondered if it had been for any insecurities, as she knew that he could have, _would_ have gone straight to her, and not bring Ravel along for the ride, so she threw out that notion. It could have been about being nervous for his first day of school now that he was a third year. With her and Akeno gone, and Xenovia being the new Student Council President, he would be a bit lonelier in the Occult Research Club. '_Was this what this is all about?_' She thought to herself, contemplating whether or not to soothe the supposedly aching child to her side. Her thoughts continued to wander until Issei finally managed to speak up, hesitating to tell them his thoughts.

"You guys, I… I think I know who I want for my Queen."

Both of the girls were a bit taken back from the declaration. Having been both pure-blood Devils aristocrats, and having grown up with the whole Evil Piece system, they understood the importance of such a piece, and what it meant to the King. Needless to say, it had taken them a few moments to truly register what he had said.

"This is, a surprise…" Rias muttered softly.

"Are you sure about this, Issei?" Ravel asked intensely. "Having a Queen, they need to be someone who you can completely trust, someone who should always stand by your side. Not to mention, they'll be needing to stand in for you if you're unable to make an event or some sort, which means they need to be both well-respected and respect others… Are they trustworthy, Issei?"

"Y-Yes." He answered while scratching his cheek, looking away from his Bishop. He hadn't been entirely sure about that, but knowing the person, while she could be playful and sneaky, even irritating at times, she was most definitely loyal to her friends if he had ever seen.

"Are they someone we know?"

That one he could answer easily. "Yes, she is."

"So it's a she?" Ravel asked, brow raised as the questions became more interesting, and in a sense, more important. "Is she really that powerful? Powerful enough to take a Queen piece?"

Of course, being Issei, he hadn't been really good at evaluating other's power levels. In truth, he knew she had taken up two Bishop Pieces before, and thought she had only became stronger since then. "Err, y-yes? I mean, she shows great potential, and I think she would be a perfect fit for my Queen." He answered confidently in the end, if only to look like he knew what he was talking about, when in reality he had no clue at all.

"Does she have any achievements or outstanding performances?"

"Did you ask Akeno these same questions when you made _her_ _your_ Queen?" He emphasized to his fiancée. She shyly admitted that perhaps she was taking this a bit too far.

"So who is she?" Ravel finally asked.

With a deep breath, Issei got ready to unveil his decision. '_Here we go…_' "It's…"

""Yes…?""

"It's…"

""_Yeees…?_""

"It's…"

""GET ON WITH IT!""

"It's Kuroka!" He screamed, thinking to himself to hell of it.

Once again, the girls had been in shock. At first, they had thought that when he had said he had chosen his Queen, that he had once in his short life made an intelligent choice. Instead, they ended up hearing something they hadn't quite expected, nor more than likely be able to comprehend.

"… Kuroka?" Ravel repeated, flabbergasted.

"Yes." He answered optimistically, sure that he had made the right choice once he screamed it out.

"… Koneko's sister?" Rias clarified.

"Yes." Again, answered optimistically.

Unfortunately, as optimistic as Issei could be, the girls could not. They both let out groans of annoyance at the possible answer, facepalming, confusing the boy as they contemplated to come up with a reason as to why he would ever choose such a person to be his Queen. They both came up with the same conclusion eventually. ''_Her breasts…_''

"Ise…" Rias said as sweetly as possible, though the growing rage inside of her would say otherwise as she wished to scold him for the choice. "What exactly gave you the idea to make her your Queen?"

"Eh?"

Had he seriously not anticipated this question? "What besides her physical attributes made you want to make her your Queen?" Rias asked more forcefully this time.

It took him a few moments to truly come up with a reply that would have satisfied Rias' and Ravel's lust for answers, as it had been true that his first thoughts of making her his Queen were indeed sexually motivated. '_No_.' He shook his head, not satisfied with saying that at all. He had changed, changed from the pervert he had once been. '_It's because-_'

"Because she wishes to make up with Koneko, and I wish help her make that come true." He answered. The girls were, for a third time, surprised at the answer. This had been satisfactory, however. "A while ago, around the time when we had been trapped by that bastard Georg and his Dimension Lost ability, she revealed to me her history. She hadn't killed her previous master out of greed, or lust for power, or simply because she's chaotic. No, she didn't do it for any of the things those bastards in the Underworld would say." He said as he clenched his fists, trying to control his anger at the thought of what she had do to protect those closest to her.

Rias placed her hand on top of the boy's own, letting him know she was there for him. Though she was worried, knowing his personality and that he wanted to be the hero, to carry out justice where it was needed, she had also heard the stories about the Nekomata that lived with them. Though she began to doubt the stories heard over the past few months, she had honestly believed that she was a trickster, someone who would take advantage of you if you let her. As she lived with the Nekomata in question though, her own doubts began to grow about those rumors, wondering if they were indeed simple fabrications to demonize someone who could easily be innocent. Even so, there was still one thing that had been undeniable. "Then why, Ise? Why make Koneko go through so much pain, to have her nearly be _executed _for her actions if not for her own selfish reasons?"

"Because if what she told me was true, then the alternative could've been much worse than death." He said grimly.

"That being?" Ravel inquired.

"… Her old master, the man she once served. He had been a power-hungry maniac, who would use his servants and their families in ways I can only imagine were terrible. He apparently used them, _abused_ them, manipulating them in trying to get whatever power-ups he could get from them… He intended to use Koneko as a means to see how far a Nekomata's power could go. She more than likely wouldn't have survived the experiments, and if she did…"

He trailed off, not wanting to think of the implications that could have happened to the poor white-haired girl who was in love with him. Seeing her smile brought him much joy, and knowing that smile, that precious little smirk she puts on as she sits in his lap like a cat would, or pouted when she didn't get her way… To think that it wouldn't even had existed had Kuroka not done what she did…

"And also…"

"And also?" Rias asked.

"I… I believe that the Queen should be someone with the biggest… breasts…" He admitted meekly. Now _that_ the girls could understand his reasoning, having been with him for so long.

After taking in a deep breath, Ravel let out an exasperated sigh. "Issei, I know you think it means that what Kuroka did was justifiable, but let me remind you, she's still a wanted criminal." She said harshly. She didn't want to do it, but if her master was to survive in the world of Devils, then he needed to know that sometimes, just sometimes, justice couldn't always prevail in the end. "Is it terrible what her master was doing to his servants? Yes, I understand that perfectly, but you're a High-Class Devil now. You need to understand that not everyone is like Rias here. There are those that will use their power to abuse those that serve them in any way imaginable. Not to mention, as we've said it a million times before, choosing your Queen is a very important thing. You need someone who is capable of holding that title and bringing honor to it!"

"But-!"

"But nothing, Issei." She scolded. "As much as I hate to say it, you need to understand that you can't protect everyone… That doesn't mean you can't try though." She said, smirking a bit as she grabbed Issei's other hand and squeezed it tight, showing she was there for him. He was a bit confused, of course, since she seemed so adamantly against it just seconds ago.

"Ravel?"

"Rias-" Ravel turned her focus from her master to her master's master. "You believe that people can change, correct?"

"Y-Yes?" She answered, a bit confused where the Phoenix girl was going with this.

"Then perhaps we should try to convince the Underworld of that as well, don't you think?"

With Issei completely confused as to what she was talking about, it was up to Rias to decipher what the Bishop meant. When she believed she had finally figured it out, her eyes became wide, astonished that the Bishop would suggest such a thing. "You don't mean-!"

"I do." Ravel nodded once, that same smug smirk that she appeared with the day she had met her master with nearly a year ago. "I believe we can convince the Underworld courts to overturn their decision to mark Kuroka as a Stray Devil. She's powerful enough to be given the Queen piece, and I think with enough training, she can gather the respect needed for the role as well."

Normally, when one dared to mention that they could have the Underworld courts overturn their own decisions, they were usually ridiculed and called crazy. That was _exactly_ what Rias was thinking at the moment. "No, no way, Ravel." She shook her head and waved her hands in front of her to show how much she was against it. "You're crazy. Issei and I may be popular, but we're not popular enough to make the courts overrule their own decisions!"

"True, the Oppai Dragon and the Switch Princess may not be powerful enough to do such a thing,"

"Then we're in an agreement." Rias said, thinking that perhaps, just perhaps, just saying that one thing had actually been all that was needed to change the girl's mind.

"But!" Rias wanted to slap herself for thinking so naively. "We _do_ know some Devils who have both the power _and_ the influence to help us make a case! Not to mention, that if it means making DxD more powerful, who are they to deny our request?"

"I-" Rias began, trying to come up with a counterargument, but had no chance. Not only did Ravel have a pretty valid point, but Issei, as much as he didn't understand where the conversation had gone, was now pouting his lower-lip and eyes wide towards his betrothed, doing his best to imitate a pouting puppy who was wanting something. With her own exasperated sigh and rubbing of forehead, she had no choice but to give up. "Fine, I'll get in contact with my brother tomorrow morning."

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><p><strong>And with that, I start my ride into fanfiction once more! I hope you enjoyed this, you probably won't be seeing this until I get the entire volume done though. If you have a critique of the story, please leave a comment telling me what I can fix so that I can do it future volumes. If you're here to tell me that my story sucks out right without any critique or think it's the best thing since sliced-fucking-bread, well then I have two words for you-<strong>

"**Fuck Off."**

**Thank you.**


	2. Volume 1, Life 2

**Alright, I promise I won't do this much, having an author's note at the beginning of a chapter, but I thought I would need to say something for the upcoming chapter. As many of you probably are aware from the last chapter, I hadn't used any Japanese honorifics with any of the names. This is because A) I'm not all that great at doing the whole honorific thing, and so, I didn't want to screw anything up by doing it, and B) I think it would be easier for a western audience (at least I can **_**assume**_** that most of you are from the 'west') to read things in a more 'Latinized' way, so to speak.**

_**However**_**, there are things that I'm probably going to keep, if only because after reading the light novel and loving it so much, it's kind of hard to not hear things certain ways. One such thing is the whole 'Oppai Dragon' thing. 'Breast Dragon' or 'Boob Dragon' just doesn't have the same effect on me as 'Oppai Dragon' does after reading it for so long. The very few things I should keep are probably "-senpai/-sensei"**

**All in all, if you see certain words stuck here or there, I apologize, but I'm trying to write what **_**feels**_** right, compared to what **_**should**_** be right, if any of that make sense.**

**Alright, sorry about that, now on to the fanfic!**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Volume 1, Life 2<strong>_

Issei seemed to be doing a lot of the same thing lately. He was standing in the middle of the first basement floor hallway of his house, dressed in his school attire, waiting outside one of the many doors that riddled said hallway early in the morning. He had been contemplating if he should wake the person up inside to talk to them before heading out to school in an hour, or leave them to slumber and talk to them after school.

The person in question he needed to talk to though was of course, Kuroka herself. As much as he argued that she should become his queen, he had forgotten the most important thing and actually _ask her_ if she even wanted to do so. The fact that he had put it off for so long, especially after what had happened the night before, was embarrassing to say the least.

With one final deep breath, he managed to gather up enough courage to tap the oak-door in front of him three times, hoping for an answer.

A few seconds passed by with no sound coming from the other side. Worried, he was about to begin tapping a second time, until he heard the shuffling sound of a young girl, cursing herself in a cutesy manner about how the room wasn't clean enough for a guest to see. A minute passed by as the door finally flung wide open to reveal, not the cat demon that Issei expected to see, but a girl, younger than he, standing in the doorway. The girl in question surprised Issei for a second, not because he hadn't been expecting her, but rather because she had been wearing the same attire that the female students of his school wore, and not the usual grey blazer and black-skirt outfit she wore often.

"O-Oh, Mr. Issei, what a pleasant surprise." The girl said with the best of her ability. Though she did her best to hide it, she had been breathing heavily for a few moments, trying to catch her breath from trying to clean up her room. Her usual curly-blonde hair was a bit frazzled as well, and missing the huge blue hat that usually accompanied it.

'_What the hell?_' "… Good morning to you too, Le Fay." Issei finally managed to say, breaking his gaze away from the uniform the girl was wearing. "I'm sorry to have disturbed you so early in the morning, but…" His gaze wouldn't last on her face too long though, as it went right back down to her body, his mind still trying to register what had happened when he wasn't around.

Le Fay Pendragon, witch and descendant of King Arthur Pendragon of England, followed the boy's gaze down to her own body. Under any normal circumstance, a misconception would result in the staring and the girl would more than likely believe that the boy in front of them had been staring down at their chest. Le Fay, having lived under the same roof as the boy for quite some time though, knew he was lustful, but not… disturbing, for lack of a better term.

She smiled as she looked back up at the boy, ready to willingly answer what was on his mind. "Over the past month, I talked to big brother. He believed that because we're no longer wanted criminals thanks to joining DxD, that I should try to interact with human society again. I'll be going to Kuoh Academy starting today as a first year." She explained happily. "I should probably start calling you Issei-senpai from now on, huh?"

With the pieces finally falling into place, Issei felt like face-palming himself for what should have been an easy problem to solve. "Of course, I should have known, and yes, I suppose you should. Ahahaha…" He said, trying to laugh off the embarrassment that he brought onto himself. Wanting to quickly forget the brief moment seconds ago, he continued speaking. "Le Fay."

"Yes, Issei-senpai?"

With rubbing the back of his head with a free arm, Issei continued on with the question he was going to originally ask. "This may sound a bit weird, but… Would you happen to know if Kuroka is awake? It's kind of important."

Unexpectedly to Issei, Le Fay was more than willing to comply with the request. Looking back into the room, she noticed the Nekomata doing her usual thing of sleeping for over sixteen hours a day. Continuing to smile, she turned back to Issei to answer his question. "It doesn't seem like it at the moment. If you'd like though, I'm more than willing to wake her up for you."

"Oh, u-uh, no, no, that's okay. Thank you for the offer though, Le Fay. Do you think she'll be awake when we get back from school?"

The girl put a finger up to her chin, trying to think of what the daily habit of the Nekomata was, before shaking her head to give him the answer. "Because of her nature, she has the habit of a cat and seems to sleep throughout most of the day. Chances are she won't be awake for solid ten hours unless we were to wake her up." Being told that, Issei came to the conclusion that perhaps it would be better to wake the Nekomata up like was offered.

Issei was invited inside the room that had been supposedly messy a few moments ago. As he went inside though, he could see no marks of such things. All of the girl's books were neatly categorized on a nearby bookshelf in alphabetical order. The covers and blankets for the futon that the girl used had been obviously put away, as the dark green carpet that covered the entire floor could be seen, with no stains to dirty its look. The desk that Issei could only assume where she did any type of work she needed to focus on was also clear any of debris that might hinder the look of the girl's room.

All-in-all, as he was invited to sit down on the floor, he couldn't help but marvel at the fact that the girl had been complaining about the room being dirty at all. His admiration was quickly stopped though, as the moment he sat down on the velvety-soft floor, he could hear a low growl growing from one of the darkened corners of the room. A large, ashen-grey wolf, larger than any type of wolf that could be found within the mortal realm, stepped out of the shadows of the room, bearing its fangs towards the boy.

Issei knew the wolf all too well, as he remembered the time had been forced to fight against it around nine months ago, when the beast had been under the control of a different master. He wished he could say that he wasn't afraid of the wolf when it came out of the shadows like that, but remembering the fact that the beast's nickname was "Devourer of Gods" and could bite through the strongest of steel didn't exactly put his mind at ease.

"No, bad Fenrir! No harassing Issei-senpai like that! We are the guests of this house, and I want you to respect him as host." Le Fay scolded, pouting a bit as she felt upset at the beast.

Fenrir, in response, perked up its ears as it picked up the sound of its new master speaking, and compelled with what she requested. Laying down where it had been standing, the beast kept its eyes on Issei. He didn't know if he was imagining it, but Issei could get the feeling that the beast wanted Issei to make a move of some kind towards Le Fay, if only so he could have an excuse to bite off the hand of this new intruder.

'_Just my luck, one _more_ thing to be worried about._' Issei thought to himself as he laughed outwardly to try to ward off the insecurities and anxiety he had.

Usually, the wolf wasn't this hostile to anyone, always calm and respectful of even the Heavenly Dragon in front of him. The problem was that the boy in front of him was known to be quite the lewd beast, and would do everything possible to protect his master. Because his master seemed to believe that the boy was not a threat though, all the beast could do was be on alert for any notice of hostility towards himself or his comrades.

On the other end of the room, Kuroka was being shaken politely by the witch. The cat was facing belly up, one arm on her stomach as she scratched it subconsciously, her mouth wide open as she snored and right leg outside the futon. It was a complete mess to look at her, really. Sadly, shaking someone so gently won't really cause them to wake up so easily.

After what should have been only a few moments, the cat finally emerged from her slumber with a big yawn, her eyelids still feeling heavy as she barely managed to open them to see the troubled face of Le Fay. Her first instinct was to ignore the unwanted trouble and fall back asleep, as she did so. The witch wouldn't have that though, and continued to shake her awake until she opened her eyes fully.

"Nyah, what do you want, Le Fay?" The cat asked as she swiped an arm towards the witch, trying to get her to leave her alone.

"Mr. Issei is here to see you, Kuroka. He says it's important." Le Fay answered the cat, switching back to a more formal way of speaking as she addressed the two people.

With the mention of the Oppai Dragon having come seen her, the cat brushed it off as some poor attempt of trying to get back at her for all the trouble she had caused around the house. The problem was, even with her half-asleep mind, Kuroka knew that Le Fay wasn't the one who would enjoy pulling pranks on others, especially such poorly executed ones at that. With eyelid opening and showing a single golden iris scanning the room, the cat couldn't help but grin as she found that the witch was telling the truth.

Getting up and sitting in a more talkative position, the cat's kimono that she had been wearing to sleep in had begun to slip off, nearly exposing her breast as it rolled down her arm casually. "It seems he has." She said as her attention switched from the witch to the dragon. "What is it that requires my attention, Oppai Dragon?" She asked in a mocking tone. Usually she wouldn't have done such a thing, but since this was probably one of the first times that the Oppai Dragon had sought her out by himself, she couldn't help but be intrigued. "Or have you finally decided to take me up on my offer, nyah?"

The 'offer' she spoke of, was of course something that was more or less created to annoy her little sister, while at the same time, being something that she was serious about. Much like Xenovia, the cat wanted offspring, but not just ordinary offspring. Her race was dying slowly, and it was becoming harder and harder to find suitable mates to create children strong enough to survive the next generation. Of course, her little sister Koneko, whilst being old enough to have children, did not have the body capable to guarantee a safe birthing. This irritated the white cat to no end, especially since her elder sister flaunted her body around the Oppai Dragon and talked of sleeping together.

Issei, like always, couldn't help but think of the offer, especially now. With the cat in front of him acting so seductively, and with Rias nowhere to be found and school only an hour away, it _could_ be considered an ample chance to finally lose his virginity. In the end though, he had to talk himself out of it. If the fear of Rias sending him to Hell for cheating on her wasn't enough, he also felt it to be too rude to kick Le Fay and Fenrir out of their room if only to be intimate with Kuroka for half an hour.

"Actually, Kuroka, I came here to talk to you about something else." He replied with the most serious tone he could muster. If he wanted to be taken seriously, then the first thing to do was to act like he wanted to be taken seriously. The next question he was going to ask wasn't going to be easy to say though. "Kuroka, have you…" He paused a bit as he rubbed the back of his head, trying to come up with an easy way to ask her the question. "Have you… have you ever thought about changing the road you're on?" He asked in a simplified manner, remember the lyrics from a song he had heard a few days ago, albeit in a screwed-up way. He couldn't help but be thankful he managed to catch it, even if it was a confusing way to ask the question he wanted.

Kuroka, not understanding what the boy meant, tilted her head. She said nothing, trying her best to figure out if the boy was attempting to talk to her in code or something.

"W-What I mean is, have you, um… Have you ever wanted to become an, Evil Piece… again…" He trailed off, hitting his index fingers together as he mumbled the last few words. He had hoped that despite asking the question, the cat wouldn't have picked up on the words. Being a cat, and an exiled devil to boot, he wouldn't have the chance.

Kuroka stayed quiet, motionless, as she stared at the poor boy across from her. Le Fay, having heard the question as well, felt it as though her mind wasn't needed at the moment, and took Fenrir outside of the room to leave the cat and dragon alone. Though she did not know what her new senpai was up to, a part of her knew he wouldn't have asked such a question unless he meant it in a positive way. Granted, from the stories she had been told to from Kuroka, she couldn't help but feel that being asked such a thing was pouring a massive amount of salt on a gaping wound, a wound that would take a _very_ long time to heal on its own.

Issei couldn't help but feel a bit betrayed as he watched Le Fay and Fenrir leave the room, but he could understand why. What he was asking was something that should be asked in private. The fact that he was asking Kuroka of all people this though, made him a bit uneasy, and could use all the support he could get, which was unfortunately none.

Kuroka continued to watch the boy like the cat she was watching its prey, clearly unamused by the question she was asked as the grin she had had long since faded away, replaced by a stoic line to show no weakness. Her previous life as an Evil Piece hadn't been a fun one like it seemed to be in the Gremory family, and now she was even one of the most wanted criminals in the Underworld because of the choices she made and evading the law for so long. And yet, did she want to become an Evil Piece again? It was a question she hadn't really asked herself before, nor one she had really thought about. All she could do was to let the boy continue speaking before deciding to kick him out of the room in anger.

"Kuroka, I, I… I'll be honest. I don't know how hard your previous life as an Evil Piece was like, nor could I ever truly wonder what it was like." The boy spoke, letting the words roll off his tongue. He hadn't come up with a proper argument before speaking to the girl, and yet, he wanted to connect with her, to show her that he was there for her. If she was to become his queen, then the first thing was to make sure their bridge of trust was built structurally sound. "B-But, I don't bring it up because I want to bring up bad memories, I do it because… I… I care about Koneko, and it's because I care, that I don't wish see her or _you_, continue hating each other."

"… And what does me becoming an Evil Piece have anything to do with Shirone, nyah?" She finally asked, her eyes still intensely watching Issei. "Whether I'm devil, or I'm Nekomata, what I am should not matter to my sister."

"But what if you're caught? What if you're driven away from your home and not able to see Koneko ever again?"

"Then I am caught, nyah. That is the life of a criminal…" She said softly as the thoughts of how long she had been on the run ran through her mind. It wasn't exactly a lie to say she hated this life, but she fully understood the consequences when she took her master's life that day.

"And if you're no longer wanted? As a criminal, I mean…"

Those words seemed to finally pierce Kuroka's defenses, as her ears perked up she seemed to focus more intently on the boy now, thinking it was some sort of sick joke. Though she knew this could all be a dream, she never thought that those words would be true, not in her life. As she looked at the boy though, all thoughts of it being a joke or a dream seemed to fade away, as the boy went back to have a serious expression on his face. It was because his expression was serious though, that made her on edge more. Narrowing her eyes, she refused to believe the boy was earnest.

But earnest he was, as he continued to speak. "Rias is on the phone with her brother at this very moment." He explained. "If we can convince him, then chances are, we can get the four Devil Kings on our side to help make a case and show the courts that you've redeemed yourself."

With the way things seemed to be going, Kuroka wanted to be happy, to think that this was all real. There had been one question that bugged her though.

"… Why, nyah?" She simply asked, her eyes still narrowed and her mouth beginning to frown at the boy. "Why are you doing this, Crimson Dragon? If you think I'm unhappy for not receiving any awards for helping out DxD, then I'm afraid to say that you're sorely mistaken, nyah. I'm perfectly content with how my life is now, nyah."

With how much she seemed to be hating the idea of him going to court for her, Issei hesitated in showing her his Queen piece. On the other hand, if she was shown the Queen piece, then chances are, she would begin to understand where he was coming from. Taking a large breath to calm himself, Issei reached within his pants pocket to grab hold of the piece had been keeping close by for all this time, to remind him what he was doing here, and pulled it out for the cat to see.

"But what if I can make that life better?" He asked. Usually he wasn't one for convincing or long-winded speeches, but for some reason, for right now, he just said whatever felt _right_. He could only pray that it _was_ right. "Kuroka, if you become my Queen, I promise you, you'll never have to feel lonely again. No longer will you have to hide from the authorities, and with me being Rias' pawn, you could see Koneko whenever you wanted to without fear of endangering her life again… So I ask you, Kuroka. Will you become my Queen?"

With the revealment of the Queen piece, numerous memories rushed through Kuroka's head. Memories of her being experimented on, of how she would have to go through sick and twisted evaluations, testing her abilities as she suffered through massive amounts of pain, all in the name of her previous master. Rage began to boil inside of her when the memories of how she heard her master planning to do the same type of experiments on her beloved sister, shortly before ending his pathetic life. The mere thought of his smug face, seeming to be pleased at the outcome of her results, as she ripped out his throat with her claws… She wanted to puke.

"Get that away from me." She muttered harshly, looking down at the ground as she tried her best to contain her anger.

Having thinking he heard her wrong, Issei's eyes went a bit wide as he asked, "What?"

"I said get that away from me!" She jumped towards the boy, lashing out at his hand and knocking the Queen piece away from the two of them, hitting the nearby wall and landing on the floor with a small thud. She climbed on top of Issei, ready to scratch him as she raised her hand above her head, the irises in her eyes becoming thin as she saw the boy as a new threat. "Never! Never again! Nyah!" She screamed as she came down with her hand, aiming for the boy's throat.

Luckily, despite being confused at how things seemed to have gone from bad to worse, Issei managed to catch the cat's paw before she could rip out his throat. The last thing he wanted to do was harm her. He wanted to help her in any way he could, but in order to do that, he needed to understand the hurt she had been through, a hurt that he _wished_ he could understand. All he could see in those golden irises was pure rage. Rage of the past, of what couldn't be let go.

From the sound of yelling, Le Fay and Fenrir burst in the room. Seeing Kuroka pinning Issei down on the floor, Le Fay could see the boy trying his best to hold the cat back. She didn't know what happened, all she knew at that moment was that she needed to help Issei, to get the screaming cat off of him. She knew that the cat had killed once before, and was capable of killing again.

Getting behind Kuroka, Le Fay wrapped her arms around the cat's, and began to pull backwards as best as she could. Fenrir tried intervening as well, trying his best to get between the cat and the boy. He didn't want to hurt her, as she was a precious comrade, even if he did think she was at the bottom of the totem pole.

Kuroka continued to scratch at Issei, going for his face and his throat, trying to do as much damage as she could. With pure wrath controlling her, she could not fully grasp that she was harming someone that truly wanted to help her. But as she was scratching and scratching, Issei was doing the unexpected. Only blocking the scratches that would be fatal, he let the cat pummel him, to let loose her fury as he wrapped his right arm around her and Le Fay. With Fenrir being pushed away from Kuroka, and with all his might, Issei brought the cat towards him, pinning her in a close hug before wrapping his other arm around her and the witch.

The cat continued to flail around, trying to get away from the devil as he held her in place. The boy didn't know if this would help, but it was the only thing he could do at the moment, to let her know he was there for her.

* * *

><p>After what felt like an eternity, but had really been a half hour, Kuroka had finally begun to calm down. Her flailing started to become less violent, as her nails began to retract, her breathing beginning to slow down as well as she began to come back to her senses. The boy underneath her, regrettably, would be without some pain himself. His face, while it hadn't been the most handsome, was now covered in scratch marks on top of bruises, crimson blood oozing out of the cuts. The damage was the worst around the eyes, as both of them were swollen and puffy, with his mouth being lucky with a single cut across it. If Asia didn't get to him soon enough, the chances would be his scars would be permanent.<p>

Luckily, Fenrir, being the smart dog as he was, had gone to fetch the former-nun a while ago, and would soon be back with her to help clean up the mess. That was neither here nor there though, as Issei could feel something wet, but not of his own making, falling on his face through the numbness that began to build. It seemed the wetness, as it turned out, was coming from Kuroka. Crying once she returned to sanity, seeing and regretting the damage she had caused, she could simply weep, and it was all Issei needed.

Le Fay climbed off the cat, allowing for Issei to fully grasp Kuroka and hold her tightly. As she got up, she didn't have to wonder much as to what caused her friend to go into a rage like that. Remembering the words from half an hour ago, about Issei asking her about becoming an Evil Piece again. She wished she could cry with the Nekomata, but she knew she needed to stay strong for her friend, and held back any tears she could feel forming.

Kneeling back down, Le Fay wrapped her own arms around the cat, trying to soothe the soul that hurt so much.

Another fifteen minutes passed by as Asia managed to come back with Fenrir. Upon seeing the damage done to Issei's face, rather than begin asking questions about what happened, quickly ran to Issei's side and immediately began healing his face, though the blood stains on the carpet and on his school uniform would remain. As Asia went to work, Kuroka managed to calm down enough to get off Issei, wiping her own puffy eyes from any remaining tears. The glimpse of red in the corner of her eye could make go into a frenzy again, but instead, it only brought more tears to her eyes.

Here Issei was, trying his best to make her free, to clear her name and let her be with her sister without worry once again. She knew, deep down in her heart, that the boy was not one to take advantage of others, as she mentally cursed herself for letting herself get out of control like that. She wished to apologize, while at the same time, believed that no apology, no matter how much she meant it, could make up for what she just did.

"I'm sorry."

Kuroka, among the other people in the room, where shocked to hear those words, as it hadn't been her that had said it.

With his face healed, Issei began to get up, sitting cross-legged as he groaned from the pain that could still be felt despite being healed. He could see how much pain Kuroka was in, and he knew that not only was the pain he feeling nothing compared to what she felt, but that he was responsible by bringing said pain up in the first place. So, he apologized, like he thought he should.

"I'm sorry, Kuroka." He apologized again, coughing a bit as he let some air into his lungs.

"Why…?" She asked, confused by the apology. "Why are you-"

"Apologizing?" He cut her off, smiling wide to try to make her feel better. "Because I was only thinking of myself." He answered, looking over and picking up the Queen piece that had still been on the floor, and continued to look at it. He said nothing for a few moments, thinking of what to say. "Kuroka…"

Stiffening up from her name being said, the cat became a bit tense. It was funny really, for someone as playful, as easy-going as her, she was becoming tense at a boy who was simply apologizing to her for something he did nothing wrong. She wanted to say sorry a million times already, but she knew that the boy wouldn't allow it. "Y-Yes, nyah?"

The boy held the Queen piece in front of him, bringing it back into the view of everyone and making it the subject once again. "Kuroka, I do think that by becoming my Queen, you could live a life much easier than the one you're living now. _However_, it is not my place to tell you what and what not to do… And for that, I'm sorry."

"Issei…"

Kuroka pretty much wanted to wrap her arms around the boy, to cry for him, to let him know that he wasn't the one who should be sorry. Once again though, she knew that wouldn't be enough, and instead, opted to do something more for the boy.

Inching closer to the boy, she wrapped her arms around him, holding him in a close embrace. Out of the four people and the one beast in the room though, what she did next shocked Issei the most. As she closed the embrace, she pushed down the boy once again, but not out of hostility. This time, it was out of love, as she pressed her breasts up against his chest, and had her lips meet with his own.

Le Fay, while shocked, was a bit jealous of the Nekomata and how she seized the opportunity to kiss her idol. On the other hand, Asia was getting jealous as well, but only because she realized that the boy hadn't kissed her in a while. She would have to let it go though, as she knew she couldn't ruin this precious moment. Of course, once the kiss starting to last over a minute long, that's when Asia had to jump in and break the two apart.

But it seemed that Asia's intervention in the kiss was unneeded, as the boy's eyes that had glazed over from the sweet taste of the cat inside his mouth, finally snapped back open as the cat pulled away, a trail of saliva connecting the two as her hand grabbed hold of his own as she took the chess piece that had held it. Sticking her tongue out a bit and giving the boy a teasing look as she closed one eye, Kuroka spoke. "If you can make me forget about my previous life, and help clear my name, then I'll accept this token, nyah."

"O-Oh? And how do you propose I help make you forget?" He asked, not sure how exactly he was going to do that.

Going back to her easy-going and teasing manner though, Kuroka winked at the boy as she placed her hand on his thigh. The blood from earlier had been washed from a rag that Asia had brought in, as she teasingly rubbed his leg. "I can think of a few ways, nyah." She said seductively as she crept closer to his crotch, something that Issei noticed a lot of the girls doing lately, not that he complained any, and began to lick his neck sweetly.

Of course, with Le Fay, Asia, and Fenrir there to intervene, the boy wouldn't get anywhere near Valhalla. Well, that, and the fact that an alarm he had placed on his cellphone he had bought not too long ago began going off, alerting him that it was time to leave for school.

He wanted to destroy the phone, to stop reminding him that school was beginning, and that he had missed breakfast that morning. No such thing could happen as Asia and Le Fay quickly grabbed him, warning him that they had to leave immediately. Oh how he cursed his life sometimes…

* * *

><p><strong>Alright, think I'm gonna stop the chapter here. As it's obvious, I wanted Kuroka to become Issei's Queen because of what happened last chapter, but I also feel as though it shouldn't be so easy, may even have some PTSD concerning her previous master. I don't know, that's just what <strong>_**my**_** headcanon says. On to the next chapter!**


	3. Volume 1, Life 3

_**Volume 1, Life 3**_

Issei let out a heavy sigh as he sat in a random chair in the school gymnasium. That morning, he and his friends had to run with the best of their ability to school in order to not be late. At the same time, they couldn't run _too_ fast, lest they give away their abilities as devils. It was annoying to say the least. If that wasn't bad enough though, he couldn't help but have a feeling deep in the pit of his stomach that something worst was going to happen within the next few moments.

As today was the first day of the new school year, all students, both new and old, were forced to first attend a school gathering. Asia, Ravel, Koneko, Irina, and Le Fay manage to sit in the seats around him, gaining the ire of any nearby male students who happened to see Issei surrounded by such beauties. The surrounding female students would have a similar reaction, or at least the ones who had attended the school before and knew of Issei's history, resulting in them wanting to see the lewd beast burn for his crimes of sitting so close to some of the school idols.

While Issei continued to sigh though, he failed to notice that Xenovia, along with Rias' rook, Rossweisse, and his mentor, Azazel, take to the stage in front of him in the massive gymnasium. The latter two were of course teachers at the school, and therefore, had to be up in front of the school attendees for the opening ceremony. Xenovia, on the other hand, had won the general election for school president the past school year, and now was forced to give a speech for the ceremony.

"Are you okay, Ise?" Asia asked with concern. She had been sitting to his right, and knew that despite not really knowing what happened other than Issei apparently asking Kuroka to be his Queen, something she found surprising to say the least. The blood he had lost from the attacks wouldn't replenish for quite a while, as it was simply the downfall of her Sacred Gear, Twilight Healing. It could heal any and all physical wounds that someone would receive, but it was unable to replenish the stamina or blood lost from said wounds.

"What happened to you?" Ravel asked, having not gotten the chance to ask before getting to the gymnasium. Sitting to his left, she felt it was her responsibility as both his manager and his Bishop to be next to him in case of a potential attack. At least, that was the lie she told herself to justify taking the chair next to his.

Trying to avoid the question, Issei waved his hand, signaling that he was alright. "It's nothing, I promise." He said with a chuckle.

"But you have blood on your shirt." Irina, sitting in the chair in front of Issei, pointed out as she turned around to look at him better.

Koneko, sitting behind the boy, didn't buy into his lies. She leaned forward to get a sniff of anything out of the ordinary, which she did. "I smell onee-sama on you." She said with annoyance, brows furrowed.

"Y-You're imaging things." He answered with another chuckle. Though he felt a bit bad about it, he wanted to wait on telling Koneko about his choice for his Queen. The two sisters, while he was sure loved each other very much, still had a bit of a falling out. He wanted to avoid adding fuel to the fire by telling the girl he promised to marry that he would be making her older sister his underling. "I simply tripped on the stairs when we began to go to school, and broke my nose. Asia healed it, and blood that had run from my nose landed on my shirt."

"… Liar."

Before he could defend himself or the situation could escalate any further, the voices of fellow comrades and friends could be heard from a few meters away.

"Issei!"

"Issei-senpai!"

"Hey, Issei!"

'_Oh thank the Devil Kings._' Issei thought to himself as he turned to see Kiba, Gasper, and Saji walking towards them down the aisle, taking seats nearby their own, next to Koneko. It was probably the only time in his existence that Issei enjoyed the fact that his dragon abilities seemed to attract both males and females. "Hey guys!" He waved back at them. "Ready for a new school year?"

Saji paused for a bit, surprised at Issei's enthusiasm, as was Kiba. "You're a bit happy, aren't you? What brought this on?" Saji questioned.

"W-What? Can't I be excited for a new year of school?"

"Not when you've hated school for as long as you have. And what happened to your shirt?" Kiba pointed out.

"O-Oh, you know, I tripped on the way to school and fell on my face. Ahahaha~"

"I thought you said you fell down the stairs?" Irina asked, unknowingly putting Issei deeper in the hole he was trying to climb out of.

Ignoring Irina, Issei tried switching the conversation. "So Saji, I heard you got a promotion to mid-level from this past winter. Congrats, man!"

"Oh, uh, thanks…? I thought you already knew that though. In fact, I'm positive you knew, as we talked about it back when I passed the exam. We celebrated because I meant I could help out Sona next year when the school gets done rebuilding." He stated. His master, Sona Sitri had wanted to build a school for low and mid-level class devil children in the Underworld in an attempt to get them the education and power they needed to be functioning members of the Underworld. For a time, they had managed to finalize the building and almost began the first school year, but due to a terrorist attack in attempting to kidnap various mages who had been there during an open house event, part of the building had been destroyed.

"Is that right? I guess I have a bad memory then when it comes to that type of stuff." Issei said as he continued his charade.

"You mean just like how you have a bad memory at how you got that blood stain on your shirt?" Kiba prodded, knowing his friend and what he was trying to do. With a coy smile, he looked at Issei as the boy looked back at him with hate in his eyes for bringing the blood subject back up. Much like the girls who surrounded Issei, he too loved to tease the boy at times.

"I'm going to take a stab in the dark here, but would this happen to have anything to do with what we ended up discussing about last night?"

"What made you ever think that, Ravel?" Issei asked back with unease.

Ravel simply shrugged her shoulders. "Devilish intuition. Now, does it?"

"Look, I don't think that I-" Before Issei could speak any more on the subject matter though, the principal of the school, a woman whom seemed to be _very_ familiar, walked up on stage before the microphone that was set up to speak to all the students in the gymnasium. The woman in question looked to be in her early or perhaps even mid-twenties, with deep brown hair that went to shoulder's length. The part that _really_ stood out though was the fact that she looked _exactly_ like Rias. "M-Mrs. Gremory?!" Issei squeaked out, not trying to be too loud and gain unnecessary attention, slumping down in his seat a bit in disarray. Still, it _was_ a bit of a shock to the boy to learn that his soon to be mother-in-law was the school principal, having not really paid attention to who the principal was the past two years.

Not forgetting what they were talking about, but wanting to answer the boy's shocked statement, Ravel leaned over to him to whisper the answers he sought after. "Because the land this town is on is controlled by the Gremory Faction, the head in the board of directors at this academy is Lord Gremory. Mrs. Gremory takes on the role as Principal for events like these, but leaves the more basic stuff to her underlings when she's out taking care of Lord Gremory's harem. Does that make sense?" Issei nodded to her question. "Good, because I still want to know where that blood came from later on." She said with a smirk, sitting back up in her chair in a more proper way as she paid attention to the speaker in front of her.

Lady Gremory waited for a few minutes on stage for the gymnasium to settle down. When it became evident that students continued to talk amongst each other, not giving her a chance to welcome them all, she tapped the microphone in front of her and coughed into it to get the attention of all the boys and girls, human and non that hid amongst the mortals. "**Good morning, young students**. **I'd like to welcome everyone to a new school year here at Kuoh Academy**. **As many of you might have already known, I am Mrs. Velenana Gremory, your principal at this school**." The woman stated, putting a hand up to her chest as she mentioned herself, before moving that same hand towards to the faculty and President of the Student Council to her left. "**Before we open up with a speech from our new Student Council President, Ms. Xenovia, I'd like to remind everyone to make the school a safe and friendly environment**." She said with a smile, before scanning out at the crowd in front of her for any potential troublemakers. "**I would like to believe it'd be for the best of us if none of you get sent to my office for anything else than some type of award**."

Shivers went down the spines of all the students as her demonic aura seemed to envelop her. For the people who couldn't see it, all they could feel was a small chill flowing through the wind that just happened to go by when the principal said those ominous words. For those who _could_ see it though, knew that the threat wasn't empty at all.

As the students settled back down, Mrs. Gremory announced for Xenovia to take central stage. With a small but respectful bow, Xenovia took the microphone and tapped it once to get the attention of the gymnasium, just like the principal. "**Thank you, Principal Gremory**." She said as she turned her focus from principal to students. "**And welcome, students of Kuoh Academy. I speak to you, here and now, not as the Student Council President, but as an equal**."

'_Odd way to start out a speech…_' Issei thought to himself. Thinking little of it though, he ignored it and continued listening.

"**I wish to start by saying that ever since I can remember, I had grown up in a region named Lazio, in a city named Anzio, a few hours away from the capital of Italy, Rome. There, I had lived and was raised in a cathedral as part of the Catholic church, where I took on the surname of the woman I followed and served under. For most of my life, I would grow up believing that what I was doing, what I was being raised to become, was righteous… Last year, I came to this country, this **_**town**_** on a mission from my church.**" She said solemnly, perhaps reliving what she thought was going to be the end of her life."**This mission… while I cannot go into specifics about this mission, I ended up learning something on it that would forever change my life. For a while, I had thought that everything I ever believed in, everything I thought was true, had been a sham. In the end, I had turned to someone whom I had once thought to be an enemy, making a rash decision that would forever affect the life I lived… I-**"

"Did you have sex!?"

Out of nowhere, the speech that Xenovia had been giving was interrupted by what Issei had initially thought to be some of the buddies he had grown up with, Matsuda and Motohama. Turned out though, that it had been one of the new First Years of the school, as the students around the interrupting boy shut him up out of sheer embarrassment, whilst the only one laughing at the question was Azazel.

"**Did I…? No, I'm still quite a virgin**." She admitted without shame. The cheeks of some of the girls in the audience reddened, while the boys seemed to take the news with glee, suddenly thinking they had a chance with the beautiful President. Unfortunately, that happiness would come crumbling down as she continued her answer. "**Though I am in the process of trying to get in bed and have a baby with Hyoudou Issei**."

Suddenly the gymnasium was full of outrage as both girls and boys weren't able to comprehend what they had just heard from one of the new school idols. The faculty on the other hand, couldn't help but facepalm or groan at how the direction of the new school year had ended up, with Azazel making things worse by laughing even harder than before.

"What?!"

"There's no way! That's impossible!"

"Lies! All lies!"

"You bastard Hyoudou!"

"Is one girl not enough, you asshole?!"

"I thought he was gay for Kiba Yuuto?!"

All the outrage seemed to turn towards Issei as the student body began to surround the boy, more ire and hatred stemming up from the fact that girls around him had surrounded him to protect him from the unruly mob. Issei quickly apologized to the people who were protecting him as he quickly dashed underneath one of the girls, running as fast as he could to get out of harm's way. Running out of the front entrance of the gymnasium, Issei began running to the old school building where the Occult Research Club was located, hoping to lose the angry mob chasing after him. Apparently that gut feeling of something bad happening had been right after all.

* * *

><p>After running for more than fifteen minutes, Issei believed he had finally managed to lose the large mob that had following him through the woods surrounding the school, as he heard the echoing groans of students eventually die down as they went back to the gymnasium for the rest of the opening ceremony lest they be disciplined. '<em>Probably know I have to go to class at some point.<em>' He thought to himself as he regulated his breathing, making his way towards to the other end of the school grounds where the old school building was.

"Honestly, the hell went up their asses?" He wondered to himself as he opened the door to the building, scratching his head in frustration. "Seriously, stupid Motohama and Matsuda. Who the hell thinks that I'm attracted to Kiba?!"

[That's the _only_ thing you're worried about?]

Issei paused as the new voiced greeted him from his left arm, his partner having obviously woken up just recently, indicated by the big yawn coming from the same arm. Leaning up against the wall on the first floor, Issei began talking to his partner and friend. "Good morning to you too." He said in his best manner, still ticked about what just happened back in the gymnasium.

[Something troubling you?]

Without saying anything, Issei more or less screamed in frustration as he used both hands to rustle up his hair, easily messing it up. "Just the school, and the usual antics." He answered eventually, unenthusiastically. Once it had been found out that he had been dating Rias, it seemed that all hell broke loose at his school as various students seemed to have bullied him for going out with the number one idol. Tacks in school shoes, writing on his desk, pushing and tripping him in the hallway. It was all typical bully behavior.

The most irritating part of it all though was probably the fact that he could easily flex his own muscles in a way to get the students off his back, but doing so would more than likely reveal his identity as both a devil, and probably as the Oppai Dragon as well. As such, he was forced to leave it up to the girls to break up the problems he had been having. It was a bit insulting to his masculinity to say the least, but he also saw the reasoning behind it, so all he could do was to let them do their thing. However, it didn't mean it didn't upset him beyond reason.

[Honestly, I don't see why you're so upset about these simpletons pulling childish pranks on you.]

"But it's not the pranks, it's the-"

[The fact that you can't do anything about it?] The dragon asked, and when he got no answer from the boy, he couldn't help but let out a groan of frustration. Sometimes, it was both absurd and annoying to help a growing man with the simplest of problems. [Yes, well, perhaps you should learn that it's just the way some things are.]

Issei furrowed his brow, obviously not appreciating that answer. "What's that supposed to mean?" He asked.

[… Issei, do you still wish to have your very own harem one day?]

"Of course!" Issei screamed. If Ddraig had any ears, they would probably be ringing from the volume and enthusiasm Issei had just given. "It's been my dream ever since I was young!"

[Of course it has…] Ddraig moaned, obviously not at all thrilled at the magnitude the answer came in. [Then, and I can't believe I'm even saying this, but, perhaps you should begin learning the perks of having such a thing.] The dragon said, shuddering after giving the advice. Oh how low the once proud and mighty had fallen.

Issei raised a brow, intrigued by what the dragon meant. "Perks? What, you mean nightly visits?" He asked, a grin beginning to grow on his face as he began imagining all the girls around him sleeping in the same bed as he, never going to sleep.

Another sigh. [No… Take your Bishop, Ravel for second. At this very moment, she is your manager, correct? She creates schedules for you, makes appointments for you, makes sure you have free time and rest when you need it. Do you really think you could live a life with your stature without someone as talented as her?]

"Y-Yeah, I guess. What are you getting at, Ddraig?"

[I'm saying that perhaps you shouldn't feel so down about the girls helping you. You can't always be the one to go in and solve the problem and become a hero. For example, I remember one fellow I had as a partner, a long time ago. He had his very own harem too, twenty wives in all.]

"T-Twenty?!" Issei exclaimed, shocked and jealous of his senpai.

[Yes, but that's not the important part. The important part is that he allowed them to help him in ways he couldn't help with. He was a terrible cook, so one of them cooked the meals for their little party. He couldn't make armor or weapons to fight with, so another who knew how to use it used a forge to create the basic necessities of battle because he hadn't been able to use me at all. One was a nurse, a tailor, a farmer. They all took their roles to help the one they had chosen to fall in love with, and in return, he helped them all with the best he could.]

"So… So what you're saying is… to let the other girls help me?"

[I am.]

Issei looked up to the ceiling above him, imagining the possibility of the girls doing such things. "Having the girls help me, huh…?"

At that moment, he began imagining them in seductive outfits fit for different professions. Asia in a sexy nurse outfit for healing holding an oversized needle; Rias in a naked apron for cooking as she made his favorite meals; Ravel in a skin tight business suit with glasses to fit as she scolded him for breaking the schedule; Akeno in a shrine priestess outfit for any exorcism he needed help with, or to help with sucking any excess energy should he need to go back to those days. Blood began to run to _both_ his heads, the same crimson liquid began to run down his noise as he continued to imagine each girl in a different outfit. Ddraig couldn't help but let out, once more, a massive sigh. [There's no hope for this young one…]

* * *

><p>After the dragon was able to break the boy out of his erotic dream by reminding him that he was at school, the boy noticed that he still had some time to blow off before he had to go back to the new homeroom he would be a part of for the rest of the school year. He decided the next best thing to do was to go to clubroom he knew all too well and hang out there for a little bit until the bell rang, signaling him to go to the next class. As he climbed the stairs to the second floor of the building and began going to the room though, he had forgotten some vital information that would bite him in the ass very soon.<p>

Casually opening the door and expecting to see nobody inside, he took in a breath of fresh air, believing this was his sanctum at the moment. Unfortunately, the boy had his eyes closed as he wanted to take in the mental image of the room with the air he inhaled, so he wasn't able to see what was in front of him. Sensing the faint scent of perfume, something he presumed to be something Rias left behind, he opened his eyes to see he was not alone.

Sitting on the couch in front of him were two girls who looked to be around the age of late primary school or early middle school, both black-haired and wearing the exact same loli gothic clothes as the other, each with their own expressionless face. The only subtle difference you could tell between the two were the shades of color in their eyes.

That wasn't the main concern for Issei though, as right in front of him, was a woman, about five years older than he. Grasping her panties in both her hands as it laid around her waist, covering her most precious spot, as her pale white skin shined in the spring sun. Her nightgown on the floor, it was obvious that she had been in the midst of changing, her sand-colored blonde hair covering the once void ruby-colored gems that were her eyes as she looked up to see who the new visitor to her domain was.

Issei's eyes widened once his brain recognized that he was not alone. With nothing but silence for the past few seconds since he had opened the door as well, Issei couldn't help but try to break the ice of walking in on a female dhampir in the midst of changing clothes. "V-Valerie…"

"… Oppai Dragon…" She answered back in a calm manner.

""Issei."" The twins on the couch managed to say at the same time, in the same expressionless tone they always used, as if they were speaking in stereo. Unfortunately, without trying to be rude, Issei completely ignored the twins as he was too focused on the woman in front of him, still half-naked.

Silence overtook the room once again. The woman never got upset, nor angry at the boy for walking in on her changing. Instead, she continued to stare at him, as if she expected him to attempt something. The twins, at that moment, continued to switch between the dragon and the dhampir, seeming to be uninterested in the showdown. One went back to sipping the tea she had in her hands, as the other eventually went back to reading the manga she had been enjoying when she looked up to see the new visitor.

"I'm sorry!"

Issei quickly rushed out of the room and slammed the door behind him, nearly ripping it off the hinges behind him in sheer embarrassment.

Since retrieving and sealing the third Holy Grail that had been originally a part of Valerie and helping her break out of her coma, the woman had been staying at the Occult Research Club room until more suitable accommodations could be made, as her mind slowly stabilized itself from having once been forced to use the Sacred Gear within her. Since the place had an adjacent bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom, Issei could only assume that it had originally been Rias' room she had been using before moving in with him the year before. In a way, he still felt bad for his kouhai, Gasper, as the original plan was to let Valerie stay with him as they both grew up together. Eventually it had to be shot down as, despite his somewhat feminine nature, Gasper was still a boy, and some of the adults were afraid of him doing something he may have regretted doing later on.

The two girls on the couch though were known as Ophis and Lilith. They had once been the same being, the Ouroboros, until the girl originally known as just Ophis was betrayed by her own faction, and her powers were sucked away using the Curse of Samael. As a result, the being known as Lilith was born using the powers stolen from Ophis, and the two, having been a part of opposite factions, were forced to face each other in the Dimensional Gap in the final battle between DxD and Rizevim Lucifer. When Rizevim fell though, Lilith lost her reason to continue fighting, and because the more sophisticated powers were unable to comprehend how to combine Ophis and Lilith together again, it was finally decided that they were to be separate entities, as they both very much enjoyed being around the Crimson Emperor Dragon, Issei.

Still, as Issei tried his best to calm himself down, he couldn't help but continue blushing as the image of the dhampir continue to run through his mind. He had to hold a hand up to his nose just to catch all the blood that had begun falling out, becoming light-headed the more it came out. Could one blame him though? For someone like Valerie, who held the beauty of both human and vampire-

'_No!_' He thought to himself as he shook his head, trying to rid himself of such thoughts. '_I promised myself I wouldn't do anything, and I'm keeping that promise!_'

Issei managed to miss the chuckling that had come from his arm as he turned back towards the door, ready to knock it as he raised his bloodied hand to the wood. With a few taps, he reached out to the people inside, albeit still a bit nervous from his encounter seconds ago. "V-Valerie? It's Issei. I want, I want to apologize for what just happened. I, um, forgot that you were living here, and I just needed to-" But he wasn't able to fully explain himself, as the girl inside invited him.

"I just got finished putting on my clothes, Issei. You may enter now."

That was all he needed to hear. With want sounded like her not being angry at his sudden intrusion, Issei mentally chanted to himself to avoid bringing the subject of what just happened. '_Think of Rias, think of Akeno, think of Kuroka… Think of Rias, think of Akeno, think of Kuroka…_' With the creak of the door opening up to reveal the scenery inside, he could see that the dhampir had gone into the other room to presumably put away her night gown, while the twins continued to sit on the couch, doing their own thing.

Plopping onto the couch opposite of the twins, Issei let out a tired sigh, something he shouldn't have to do so early in the day. Raising his arm to cover his eyes from the light in the room, he noticed the blood that had been covering his hand, as some of it was still wet from minutes ago. '_I should get that washed up… Eh, fuck it._' He thought as he covered his eyes with the same arm. '_Just let me rest for a few minutes, then I'll go back to class and clean this up…_'

"Issei." One of the twins addressed him.

Though he didn't move his arm to look at her, Issei still responded. "Hmm?"

"Did, someone attack you?"

Finally Issei moved his arm to look at the girl across from him, staring back into the grey eyes that bore into him. He couldn't lie that sometimes the twins freaked him out sometimes, always having the same expressionless faces on. He almost felt like they were going to play a scene out of an old movie from the west and ask to go play with them forever and ever whilst wearing blue dresses. "No, Ophis, no one attacked me." He said with the best smile he could come up with, although it was technically a lie.

He knew the girl cared deeply about him, being her first friend in a very long time, if ever, and would destroy any who attempted to hurt him. "Then what happened?" She asked, tilting her head as if it were to show she was more interested in the answer he would give.

He refused to answer, but asked her a question in return. "Nothing really happened… What's been happening with you, though? Ever since you and Lilith began to stay here with Valerie in order to protect her, I haven't seen you much around the mansion at all."

Taking another sip from her tea, Ophis played along. "It's, been quiet. The child talks to herself less each day. The remedy, it seems to work."

"I see, that is good…" '_Must be talking about Valerie. I'll be sure to tell Gasper the good news the next time I see him then._' "… Ophis." He called out, taking his arm off his head as he rolled it forward to look at the girl across from him.

"Yes, Issei?"

"Do you think…" '_That this peace will last…?_' "… No, never mind. I'm going to go wash this blood up." He added at the end as he got up off the couch, deciding to finally wash off the blood he had accumulated on his shirt, arm, and hand.

Not knowing what he was about to say, the immortal dragon named Ophis couldn't help but let it drop, going back to sipping her tea.

* * *

><p>Walking towards the bathroom and having not seen Valerie for the past few minutes, he made sure to knock on the bathroom door to avoid any more embarrassing moments. Not hearing any replies coming from inside, he could only assume that the room was clear. He became relieved to see that he was right as he opened the door.<p>

Turning the bathroom sink on, he let the water run a bit as he waited for it to get warm. Issei couldn't help but grimace a bit as he looked at the streaks of blood on his face in the mirror. Other than his nose, the entire front of his shirt was drenched in crimson. How he even managed to stand on his feet at that moment was a bit of a miracle in it itself. It also didn't help that the top of his shirt was ripped a bit, exposing the fleshy skin beneath. '_Odd, no one seemed to point that out…_'

Taking both his school uniform and the undershirt that went with it off, Issei couldn't help but marvel at his own torso. He wasn't marveling it in a good light though. He noticed that atop the muscles he had accumulated through his year of training since he had become a devil, numerous scars plagued his body. It was funny really. Despite having received this new body from both Ophis and Great Red after succumbing to the Curse of Samael, it seemed the scars of the past would never fade, not even with a new body.

Reminiscing about the past, Issei put one hand to his stomach, where a massive scar from one of the Excalibur shards struck it when he had fought against Irina for the first time.

[You're too young to be thinking you've gained years of experience.]

"You don't think I have, Ddraig?" Issei snorted, taking his friend's comment as a joke. "I've fought against devils, angels, fallen angels, vampires, dragons, gods… Truly, what is there left for me?"

[Sleeping with your women?]

Issei rolled his eyes at that. "You make it sound like that's _all_ I care about."

[And you don't…? I remember a time, Hyoudou Issei. I remember a time when you're life goal seemed to be nothing but to sleep with a woman. Now, you have a number to pick from, and yet you refuse to go forward with any of them. That Valkyrie-]

"That's because I have a promise to keep with Rias!" Issei yelled, clearly feeling uncomfortable with this conversation. He continued to watch the water in the sink fill up with hot water as Ddraig spoke on.

[And that would have kept you from doing it with someone else in the past?]

The boy narrowed his eyes. "What are you getting at, Ddraig?"

[… I'm saying you've matured, boy. No longer do you seem to be fueled by your lust, well, not entirely anyways. Just a year ago, I bet you would have broken your promise with little miss red head had one of the other girls offered to spend a night with you. The fact that you even acknowledge the girl's feelings, all of their feelings, and you do your best to make them happy prove my point. You've matured this past year Issei, and you should be happy about it.]

"You're only happy because it might mean you won't be called the 'Oppai Dragon' anymore." Issei responded with a grin. When Ddraig let out a sigh and started to mumble underneath his breath, Issei began to pat his arm and rub it up and down, laughing as he did. "I'm sorry, Ddraig, perhaps I shouldn't tease you like that."

Accepting the boy's apology, the dragon spoke again. [I'm serious about what I said. You have matured Issei, and maturing is only the first step in becoming a proper king and having your own harem.]

Issei smiled, taking a washcloth from a nearby rack and dousing it in the warm water as he began wiping up the dried blood from his face. "Thanks Ddraig, I'll remember that."

* * *

><p>Throwing his bloodied shirts into the trashcan, the boy remembered having extra shirts for all the club members in a special drawer in the main room. Ignoring the quizzical looks the twins were giving him, he noticed that Valerie had gone back to the main clubroom as well, wearing a simply black dress that fit her figure, and sipping on her own cup of tea. Looking up and seeing him enter the room, the young woman couldn't help but smile and offer him a cup as well.<p>

"I apologize, I really shouldn't." Issei responded, taking the clothes from the drawer and putting the right set on. The last thing he wanted to do was accidentally put Rias' or Akeno's old clothes on. "I really should be getting back to class."

Valerie pouted her lips a bit, upset that her friend would be leaving so soon. "But you only just got here. Surely you can stay for _one_ cup, can't you?"

He waved apologetically, clearly trying to leave. "I'm afraid I really can't do that, Valerie. It'll be bad for me to miss my homeroom on the very first day of school. I'll be coming back with the rest of the club this afternoon though, so you can brew up some of that special tea then, right?" He asked, trying to get her spirits up once again.

With a defeated sigh, the dhampir couldn't help but let him go. "Very well then… You _will_ come back though, right? It's been awfully boring around here with only the dragons to keep me company." She complained, holding a hand out to insinuate what she meant, as the dragons across from her gave no response to her grievance.

"Yes, I promise. I'll even bring Gasper to come play with you." He added. He knew the boy could never say no to the person who was basically his childhood friend, a mother-figure, and quite possibly a love interest. At least, that's what Issei _hoped_ for. It was bad enough he felt that Kiba was getting a bit too close for him, he didn't want Gasper to be another suspect of 'more-than-friendly' feelings towards him as well.

With the mention of Gasper, the dhampir couldn't help but put on a bright smile, as it meant her favorite little playmate and toy would be coming to visit her once again. "Very well, I suppose I should let you go then."

Issei bid farewell to all three beings inside the clubroom, racing to outside so that he wouldn't miss his first day of school.

* * *

><p>Even at full sprint, it had taken the boy longer than he initially expected to reach the classroom he had been assigned to. Running down the hallway of the third floor of his school, he slowed down as he came face to face to the door that he would enter again and again for the next year. Not really thinking it had any kind of special meaning behind it as he was out of breath having ran the entire way, he opened the door with a loud bang, hoping he hadn't been late for the roll call. "S… Sor… Sorry for being…"<p>

Ironic. Issei thought he had been in shape considering what his life had become over the past year and the things he had done. Yet now, he was so out of breath from running a little more than a kilometer that he wasn't even able to apologize for his tardiness, his hands on his knees as he continued to try to catch the air he so desperately wanted. The blow to his ego should anyone ever mention it to the people he loved would be tremendous at most.

"Homeroom has already started, Mr. Hyoudou. I'd appreciate it if you would kindly take your seat now."

Issei's eyes widened as he looked up from the floor he had been starting at for the past few seconds to see the silver-haired beauty that was his homeroom teacher. Thinking she had been the Civic Teacher for the Second Years, Issei could only mutter under breath a single word as he saw his fellow peerage comrade and harem member standing behind the teacher's desk. "_Rose…?_"

Clearly not taking acceptance to being called her nickname at school when she was to be respected as a teacher, or at least that was what Issei had assumed, Rossweisse seemed to glare daggers at the boy as she pointed to the only available desk in the entire classroom. "Sit, _now_."

"Y-Yes'm!" He answered as he quickly straightened himself out and went to the desk she had been pointing at.

In the very first row and in the middle aisle, the boy made a quick glance at the people who would be his neighbors until the next time seats were rearranged. He was a bit saddened at the fact that sitting in the front row meant the unlikeliness of being able to get away with sleeping in class. Taking his seat and ignoring the snickers coming from the other classmates, Issei looked up at the chalkboard in front of him as the Valkyrie waited for the classroom to settle down. If there was anything at all that could be said to be good about this entire event, it would probably have to be the fact that Irina, Asia, and Xenovia were the people sitting around him.

The class finally settling down, Rossweisse took in a deep breath as she finally managed to begin her battle plan of the new school year as she told all the students to stand. "Good morning students, my name is Rossweisse Rådgriddotter, but you may all call me Rossweisse-sensei." She said with a smile. Typically it was unheard of to call someone in Japan by their first name right off the bat, but in the woman's defense, she didn't exactly want to be continually called her mother's daughter in her native tongue. "Please take good care of me." She added in the end, giving a small bow with it.

The students sat back in down in their seats after giving their own bow to show respect for their teacher, as the Valkyrie teacher went on with the plan she had written up for the class. One by one, Rossweisse began to call out the names of the students as she took the attendance, getting into the groove of her new position.

As the first few students were being called out, Asia, who was sitting behind Issei, leaned forward to whisper to the boy in front of her, asking if he had been alright from the morning assembly. "_Don't worry, Asia, I managed to get to the clubroom just fine. I ended up changing shirts and began running back here as quick as possible. What happened at the assembly afterwards_?"

This time, it had been Irina who leaned over and began whispering to the boy. "_It almost turned into a riot because of what Xenovia said. The principal had to intervene and tell everyone to sit down again before threatening everyone with detention for the entire year_."

Suddenly remembering the reason _why_ he had been forced out of the assembly in the first place, Issei leaned over to Xenovia, an annoyed look on his face. "_Speaking of which, why the hell did you have to go and say that_?!"

"Say what?" Xenovia replied, not playing the whispering game. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"_You know exactly what! Why did you have to go and tell everyone about us_?!"

"_Yeah, Xenovia. I thought the Student Council President was supposed to enforce rules stating no sexual relationships_? _What's up with that_?" Irina intervened.

Xenovia shrugged. "What two people do in the privacy of their homes is none of my business. So long as they're not hurting themselves or anyone else and their grades don't get affected, I don't care what the students do in their private lives."

"_What_?! _I thought you Catholics were all _about_ getting into people's lives_?!"

Offended by the proclamation, Xenovia glared at her best friend a bit, clearly not amused. "A common misconception about the church, Irina. Besides, people can change over time."

"_Yeah, but what about-_" But Issei was cut off short, as two pieces of chalk came flying through the air, hitting himself and Irina right on their foreheads. A red mark appeared on both of their heads as they tried to soothe the pain away with their hands.

"Ms. Shidou, Mr. Hyoudou, I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk while I was taking roll call." Rossweisse interrupted with a strict tone in her voice. With one hand on her hip, she pointed her other hand out towards the doorway, showing them where to go. "Out into the hallway, _now_."

Irina, whilst annoyed that it was only her and Issei that got in trouble, did as she was told. Issei on the other hand, ignored the snickers of the classroom once again as he tried to reason with the enraged teacher. "B-But! Xenovia was also-"

"_Now_, Mr. Hyoudou!"

Seeing that there was no way he was going to win the battle, Issei could only afford to follow Irina outside to the hallway, where they were forced to stand just outside for the rest of the class time. With roll call being called out once again, Issei sighed, listening in to the class with the door wide open. "Stupid Xenovia…" He muttered under his breath.

While he continued grumbling about how the new school year started for him, he couldn't help but notice that the girl next to him seemed to be laughing to herself, as if this was all some sort huge joke. Curiosity finally getting the best of him, he couldn't help but ask.

"What's got you in such a good mood?"

Ceasing her laughter for a second, Irina smiled as she 'answered' the boy's question. "Hmm…? Oh, it's nothing." She said, going back to laughing to herself.

Annoyed that he wasn't allowed to know what she was laughing about, he couldn't help but ask again. "No, seriously, what's so funny, Irina?"

Finally giving in to the boy's curiosity, the girl answered him. "Well… Do you remember back when we were kids, Issei? We'd always end up causing some sort of trouble or mischief, especially at school?"

Issei shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so… What does that have to do with you laughing though?"

"Well, it reminds me of the days when we used to be little, of when we went to school together. We used to get in so much trouble back then, the teacher would always send us out into the hallway, only for everything to become worse as we goofed around out there as well."

Remembering the days of old, Issei couldn't help but smile as well as the memories came flooding back to him. Before he could say anything more though, with mathematical precision and strength, Rossweisse had managed to bounce a piece of chalk off the doorframe from inside the classroom, and nail Issei right in the back of the head as he continued to stand outside in the hallway. "No talking out there!" The Valkyrie yelled from inside the classroom. Some of the students could no longer hold back their snickering and burst into full-blown laughter.

'_God damnit…!_' Issei thought to himself as he rubbed the back of his head. "We weren't talking!" He yelled back, feeling a little bit rebellious for the piece of chalk that was thrown at his head.

"An hour detention after school!"

With the declaration of being given detention for simply yelling back, Issei finally shut quiet, whilst Irina joined in the laughter from the classroom. '_She _must_ be pissed off about_ that_!_' He thought to himself, thinking of the only logical thing that would have made the Norse woman so mad at him.

* * *

><p>A few hours had passed, and lunch time had finally arrived, something that Issei was more than looking forward to. Atop the rooftop he sat, away from the glares of his classmates as the emotion of envy ran through the school like a plague. It seemed though, that even going to a place where no one else would look for him, he could still not escape the dirty look of one particular classmate.<p>

"How is it that we're both dragons, and yet the only one of us surrounded by ladies is you?!"

His fellow friend and Sacred Gear user of a legendary dragon, Saji Genshirou, pointed a finger accusingly at Issei. Despite there being two other guys with them, Issei had been the only one surrounded by the girls of the group. Asia and Ravel to his sides as they sat next to him as his Bishops, Xenovia and Irina sitting next to Asia as all three played card games as they ate lunch, and Koneko sitting on Issei's lap, feeding him his lunch. It was indeed an envious sight to behold.

"You could have something like this as well if you ended up paying enough attention to your surroundings." Xenovia said casually, flipping a card that laid on the ground to show the other two players. "Blackjack."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?!"

"You need not drown in sorrow, Saji. Follow the path of Christ, and I'm sure you'll be rewarded for your good deeds one day." Irina said cheerfully, thinking it would help the discouraged boy.

Saji, being a devil, honestly didn't know how to answer that other than to give the girl a gloomy expression. Obviously, Irina was going to be of no help in the section of life known as love, especially when she couldn't be true to herself all the time without the chance of falling. Meanwhile, having heard the cries of anguish and envy from his buddy a million times already, Issei had eventually learned to tune out the complaints of his jealous friend.

"Senpai-"

Koneko held up a bit of chicken in front of Issei's face between a pair of chopsticks, who happily ate it without hesitation. Using the same pair of chopsticks, Koneko then picked up her own piece of chicken and ate it, savoring the taste of her senpai in her mouth. Technically, the meal had been made by their master and was only meant for Issei, but the boy made no complaints of sharing his food with a cute girl who sat on his lap like the cat she was.

For once, Ravel was ignoring the cat who had taken her precious seat to open a letter she had received that morning from a secret admirer. She had been given it by one of the many girls in her classroom, who refused to give out the name of the individual who was asking for her time. By that fact alone, she narrowed the person down to someone who was either incredibly shy, or just incompetent in thinking that not giving out your name was supposed to be something 'mysterious'. Either way, she briefly read the letter, finding it to be the stereotypical love letter that you would find in any school life manga or anime, asking for her to meet up with the person behind the school building after class. Not even willing to give the person a reply, she used her powers of the Phoenix to burn all existence of the letter away. After all, she already had a man she loved, and needed no one else.

"Was that so wise?"

"Hmm?" Ravel looked up from the meal she had gone back to eating, when she was the question by Kiba, who was sitting just a few feet away from her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, obviously someone went through the trouble of writing that letter for you. Would it have hurt to at least see who it was?"

Ravel snorted, finding the advice given by her senpai to be comical to say the least. "Someone who decides to write a letter to get my attention instead of coming to see me personally isn't worth my time. Besides, I'm Lord Issei's Bishop and manager, I have no time for someone else."

Kiba chuckled at the girl's answer. Despite being someone's 'Bishop' wasn't really an answer, he understood the implication of what she meant. "Still," he continued the conversation. "Receiving a letter on the very first day of school; that has to be some sort of new record, right?"

"If it means anything, it means it's going to be a very annoying year." Ravel commented, eating the cut tomato in her lunch as she dreaded the onslaught of letters that were going to come her way. It had been bad the previous year, with a little over six hundred letters all being thrown into her shoebox and into her desk. It had gotten so bad at the end of the year, that she had to ask both Rossweisse and Le Fay if there was a way to connect a portal to her desk and shoebox that would send all letters into the vacuum of space, or better yet, into an incinerator. Apparently this was one of the downfalls of being one of the new idols of the school. 'The Pompous Princess' she had been named at one point, for the cold attitude towards those she didn't like and the princess-like air that surrounded her no matter where she went.

The conversation was interrupted though as Koneko, who was still sitting on Issei's lap, said something aloud that got the attention of all the people around her.

"… I feel something hard poking me." She said as she shifted uncomfortably.

Immediately, everyone looked at Issei, thinking he had awakened his natural instincts of a young and horny teenage boy. Jealous, and not wanting him to violate the cute girl, Asia pinched Issei's cheek, _hard_. "Owowowowowow, A-Asia! It's not me!"

"Honestly, Issei, can't you go on for a single day without doing something perverted?" Ravel scolded, who began to pinch Issei's other cheek.

"It's not me!" Issei cried out, pleading for his innocence.

The attention was quickly switched from Issei to the door leading to the roof though as the door in question burst open. Two boys in school uniforms, with one girl right behind them, came running towards the group on the roof at full speed, obviously upset at something. As this was happening, everyone seemed to miss the culprit that had been poking Koneko. A piece of chicken that had fallen from Issei's mouth to the ground, which she quickly devoured.

The two boys in question were the newly-nicknamed 'Perverted Duo', as it seemed that Issei had gone and matured to the point where he was no longer doing perverted things in school like peeping into the girls locker room or looking at pervy magazines in class, but at the same time, still hated enough by the female populace to not get close to him. Matsuda and Motohama on the other hand were still Class-A perverts when it came down to it.

""_**ISSEI!**_"" They both yelled out as they came running towards the group, ready to pound the Crimson Dragon simply out of jealousy, had they not tripped over their own feet and ended up falling flat on their faces right in front of the beings of another realm. The girl who had been following the two perverted boys, was a close friend of Asia's, and also someone who could be considered the female version of the Perverted Duo, Aika Kiriyuu.

"It's not fair!" Matsuda yelled out as he looked up from the ground, tears streaming down from his face and blood running from his nose.

"How could you do this to us, your brothers-in-arms?!" Motohama added as he too looked up from the asphalt, glasses now cracked.

"The heck are you two idiots talking about?" Issei asked the two boys as he looked down as his friends, feeling pity for them, before remembering that he too had been like that once before. That thought quickly went away though as he thanked Koneko for giving him some rice.

"I think they're jealous of the little group you have around you." Kiriyuu answered as she crept around Xenovia and Irina to get behind Asia, who were all too focused in their card game to notice the extra girl. Squatting behind the former nun, she quickly put her hands on the nun's breasts, massaging them as she playfully teased her friend. "Aaasssiiaaa~. My my, you seem to have gotten bigger over the break."

Asia yelped in fright as her friend suddenly grabbed her in a sensitive place, as she let go of the cards she had been holding and accidentally showed Irina and Xenovia her winning hand. As Asia pleaded for her friend to stop teasing her, Issei could feel himself getting aroused by the sight. His concentration on what was happening with Asia was broken when the Perverted Duo continued to complain to him.

"She's exactly right, Issei!" Matsuda proclaimed, getting up from the ground and brushing off any dust from his uniform before pointing his finger at what he considered to be his new arch-rival. "The past two years, we promised each other we'd _all_ get harems, _together_! But no longer! We'll show you!"

"We know your secret. We know how these girls are attracted to you! After all this time, it makes so much sense!"

Issei, including other members of the Occult Research Club, seemed to focus on the two boys now as the dragon himself took in a deep breathe, scared that he may have accidentally leaked their secret of being devils out without meaning to. "I-Is that right…" Issei answered nervously. "And what proof do you exactly have?"

As Matsuda and Motohama dug into their uniforms, Kiba slowly began to get up, ready to knock the two out and take them to Azazel should it be true that they had proof of the supernatural, while Xenovia was doing the same. Pleading that it hadn't been a picture or something along those lines, Issei's prayers had been answered as it wasn't a photo that the two perverts pulled out, but rather, pieces of paper. "The Occult Research Club!"

Kiba and Xenovia, both just about to stand up completely, ended up falling back onto their butts as all the members of the club were flabbergasted at the answer to say the least. Not really knowing what to say, Matsuda and Motohama went on to explain their detective reasoning. "Ever since you joined the club last year, we've noticed subtle changes around you, Hyoudou Issei!" Motohama accused.

"When you joined, nothing happened at first, and you had still been one of us! But first came the sexiest girls in the school, Rias and Akeno, and then Asia here, and then Xenovia, and Irina, and-"

"We get it, you idiots think he got the attention of us by joining the club." Ravel cut them off, getting annoyed by the new nuisances that had interrupted her nice lunch time. "You're wrong by the way. Now go away, you're making me sick to my stomach." She said as she waved them off.

"Aha! That's what you'd _like_ us to do, isn't it Ms. Pompous Princess?!"

"Yes, it is. And where the heck did you get that nickname from?!"

"Well too bad, because we're here on official business!" Matsuda claimed as he waved the paper that had been in hand the entire time. "This, right here, is an official club sign-up! And would you like to guess what club me and Motohama have signed up to this year?!"

Issei, who had wanted to facepalm from their stupidity, could feel a bad omen coming on. "You didn't…"

"We did!" Motohama answered as he pulled a new pair of glasses out of nowhere, fitting them on as he threw the old broken ones away.

The two perverts weren't the only ones who had pulled out a club form though, as Kiriyuu had also pulled out a form, showing it to the Church Trio after settling down and stopped harassing Asia. "If the bumbling fools are going to join, I thought I'd do so as well to protect Asia here." She said with a grin, scooching up next to the nun. Issei would have made an off-handed comment about how Asia was going to be in more danger with Kiriyuu around more now, but he, along with all the other members, were stunned by the stupidity of the Perverted Duo.

Whilst everyone was being silent, Gasper, the only one who hadn't talked this entire time and had hid behind Issei the moment the Perverted Duo and Kiriyuu had come up to the roof, pointed something out very vital to the Duo's plan. "U-Umm…"

Picking up that Gasper wanted to say something, Issei turned his head to the best of his ability to look at the Dhampir behind him. "Gasper?" He asked, trying to help his friend with overcoming his fear of strangers. He had been doing so well too, recently, though a part of Issei could understand why Gasper would be so afraid of the two idiots in front of him.

"S-Since Asia-senpai is president of the club now, um… S-She'll have to approve your forms!"

Both Matsuda and Motohama, the two perverts who had felt so triumphant moments ago, both felt like they had been punched in the gut as they had forgotten the most important point of joining a club. Unlike the other schools in the country, in order to join a club at Kuoh, your form had to be approved by the President of the said club. This rule had been put in place by the administrators not out of fear for any perverted reasons like the one the Duo were doing, but rather, it was a failsafe for devils joining clubs, as it would make it easier for regulating non-devils joining clubs dominated by the supernatural.

For the pervert Motohama though, defeat was not an option. Not feeling gloom over not joining immediately, he quickly got in front of Asia and got on his knees as he bowed in front of her. "Please let us into the club!" He yelled as Matsuda quickly followed suit.

"No." Issei quickly replied, not even giving Asia time to think. There was no way he was going to let them near the girls!

""Please let us into the club!""

"No!"

""Please let us into the club!""

"What part of 'No!' don't you guys understand?!"

"Why not give them a trial?"

"Don't give them ideas!" Issei pointed towards Saji, who was wearing a smirk at the suggestion he gave. It was the least he could do to Issei for being more popular than him.

"We can always make them do some sort of impossible task and fail them later." Irina suggested, not wanting to seclude people from the club simply because they were human.

"Do that!" Matsuda said as felt tears forming in his eyes to thank Irina. "We promise, we'll do whatever you tell us to do! Want all our porn? Done! Want our eroges? Done! Want-"

"A picture of a ghost."

Everyone turned to look at Asia who had made the last comment. Apparently, she was proud of herself for having come up with a suggestion she thought was clever. After all, how easy could it be for the Perverted Duo to capture a picture of a ghost? It was a win-win for everyone.

"Asia…"

"Get us a picture of a ghost, and I'll approve your forms. After all, we are the Occult Research Club, and researching the Occult is our thing."

* * *

><p>And that left Issei with his current predicament. It was after lunch now and close to the end of school, and after finally agreeing to let the Perverted Duo and Kiriyuu try out for the club, Issei had begun to become afraid that the two idiots may very well succeed in finding a ghost, though he tried his best not to damn Asia for giving them the idea in the first place. She did it because she wanted everyone to be happy, and had no ill intentions behind it at all, this much he knew. It didn't exactly help that ghosts <em>did<em> exist though, and that a few of them even roamed the halls of the school. Some of them were even friendly enough and often helped students without them realizing it.

Though, as much as he wanted to focus on Matsuda and Motohama joining the club, he knew he couldn't. School was almost out, which meant he was going to have to stay for an extra hour after class for detention, and worst of all, he wasn't going to be able to see Rias immediately afterwards like he had promised her that morning. That, and the fact that he had felt bad since lunch when he had forgotten to tell Gasper about the update on Valerie.

With the final bell ringing, the class stood up and was dismissed, with some people being left behind to clean the classroom. Issei, on the other hand, stayed in his seat, waiting for Rossweisse to come back to the classroom to dish out the punishment that she had given him. He could feel a pat on his back as he turned to see Kiba ensuring him that he'd pass on the news to their master about his absence. Issei smiled and thanked him, apologizing for he had managed to get himself into on the very first day back at school.

Ten minutes ticked by as the final classmate managed to clean the remaining part of the room and left for the day, leaving Issei to his lonesome self. Deciding that he was supposed to be in detention, that perhaps he should take this time to actually do something for a change and begin studying, pulling his math notes out of his bag and putting them in front of him. Of course, even the best of plans tend to go haywire once in a while, as he totally forgot that he had done nothing but doodled during the second period class, leaving the notes to the girls who could help him study later on. In fact, that was _all_ his notes were.

Letting out a groan of frustration and hitting his forehead on the desk, Issei grumbled as he realized just how pathetic he was when it came to schoolwork.

"You let yourself down easily, don't you?"

Issei looked up from his notebook to see the teacher and friend he had been waiting for standing in the doorway. He wished he could've said that she was in a better mood from that morning, but he knew all too well from the way she stood in the doorway, to the way she had one hand on her hip while holding her work supplies in her other arm, even down to the way she wore her glasses, she was anything _but_ happy to be there.

"Do you always treat people that way?" Issei teased, trying to get the teacher to lighten up as he rested his chin on his desk, watching the woman go to the desk in front of him. Despite not giving him a direct answer to his teasing question though, the way the woman had slammed her books down onto to the desk told him that she was in no mood to play around. Immediately opening up the first book in front of her, she took a pencil she had been carrying around in her bag and began scribbling down what the boy had thought were notes. If he managed to look more closely though, he would have seen that it had been a crude picture that had been drawn that morning. A picture of him, and with negative words such as "Idiot", and "Moron" written around it.

With minutes slowly going by, Issei could feel his sanity slowly slipping as he nothing to do. He stared into space as he tapped the end of his pencil on the desk, a hand on his chin as he wondered what everyone else was up to at that very moment. Soon afterwards, he began to hum the theme to "Oppai Dragon", much to the dismay of the dragon in his arm and to the teacher across from him.

After singing the same tune for the seventh time in a row, Rossweisse's patience finally managed to reach its peak. With her pencil snapping in two in her hand, she used her other hand to take the glasses she wore for style and placed them on the desk as she took in a deep breath. Exhaling, she looked up from the desk towards to the boy across from her. "Issei…"

No good, as the boy continued to hum.

"Issei."

"Hmm?" He finally managed to stop the humming to pay attention to the Valkyrie.

"Will you _please_ stop that humming?"

[Yes! Please! For all that is holy, stop!]

Issei raised a brow at his partner. "I thought you got used to the theme?"

[Once or twice? Yes. Seven times?! No, I did not get stuck in a bloody gauntlet to suffer such torture!] His partner answered him as the boy could begin to hear sniffing coming from his arm shortly afterwards.

"Issei!"

Both the boy and the dragon shut their mouths as Rossweisse was finally forced to raise her voice. Upon seeing that she got their attention, she coughed once, putting the glasses back on. "Your humming is distracting, so please, cease doing it."

"And here I thought I would be able to have a little fun after class today…" The boy muttered under his breath, trying to make light of the situation that he was in. Of course, not everything that came out of the boy's mouth could be perceived as funny.

Rossweisse, having caught what the boy said, picked out a new pencil before placing both hands under her chin, resting on them as she glared at him. "Detention is not meant to be _fun_. I'm sure you've gotten homework today despite it being the first day, and I'm sure the girls would appreciate it with not having to teach you again." She commented, thinking that perhaps she could finally convince the boy to do his own school work now rather than waiting to do it later when the others would be there to help him out as she went back to her own. When she looked up at him a few minutes later though, she could see that he hadn't even touched his bag, nor any of his notes, and instead was sitting at his desk, twiddling his thumbs. She sighed, not wanting to get her hopes up on him actually having done his work. "You forgot to take notes today, didn't you…?"

[No, he didn't. He made doodles instead.]

"Oi! Traitor!"

Rossweisse groaned, cursing her life.

"Um, listen Rose, can we please do this later? I kind of have to go and-"

"_Sit_, Issei."

Issei, who had been rising out his seat to leave, hoping it was going to work, immediately sat back down. Rossweisse, on the other hand, had been the one to leave her seat as she walked around the desk and leaned against it in front of Issei. The two stared at each other, neither saying a word, as both wondered what the other one was thinking.

"Issei."

"Y-Yes?"

Rossweisse crossed her arms. "What do you want to do with your life, Issei?"

"… What?"

"What do you want to do with your life? You never seem to take your homework seriously, even when we help you out. In fact, the only time you ever _did_ take studying seriously is when we did… that…"

The Valkyrie's entire face began to become red as memories of the break between the boy's second and third year of high school played her mind. While the boy was very much a virgin in terms of actual intercourse, that didn't mean that they hadn't experimented with each other before. She felt that she had been the farthest away from the person she had fallen for, and since he always did mediocre for his grades, what better way to motivate him than the show him the ways of pleasuring a woman as a reward? She may have never been in a relationship before, but that didn't mean she hadn't dabbled before in the self-indulging ways back in her homeland, back before she had become a devil, very much like the boy who had done the same.

"Is that why you've been so upset today?"

"H-Huh?" Rossweisse snapped out of her minor daze as the boy asked her about the way she acted the entire day. "I-I have no clue what you mean." She answered as she averted her eyes from the boy. It seemed that the shoe was on the other foot now, as Issei began pressuring her into telling the truth about her feelings.

"If you're upset because we've stopped the study sessions, then I'm sorry Rose. Rias wanted me to stop doing things that would get me excited, and well… I appreciate what you did, but it doesn't mean I don't care about studying anymore. I just think that until, well, _that_ happens, we should continue not having the sessions, lest Rias finds out."

Rossweisse tightened her grip on her arms, as the name of her master continued to pop up. '_Rias this, Rias that… I have feelings too, I have needs too! I need..._'

Thankful for the fact that Rias had brought her into this world and the things she had done for her and the things was going to do, the Valkyrie still couldn't lie to her own feelings. She did what she felt was the best thing to do, and march across the gap that separated her and Issei, holding both his cheeks in her hands. With a swift motion, she had become the second person that day to kiss the boy, as she made sure her tongue intertwined with his. The job of being a highschool teacher when she wanted to teach magic, the role of being too far away from Issei, it had started to become too much for her, and she wanted help to release that stress that instant.

When she broke free, she said a few simple words that she hoped that would excite the boy.

"We're continuing our study session. _Now_."

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys, I apologize for this rushed ending (you can definitely tell in my writing style how much I truly care about finishing the chapter with how much effort I put into the finishing stretch… then again, not really good to do it at 4 in the morning either).<strong>

**Will this series have sex? Yes. Will this series have actual lemon series? No. Two reasons for this.**

**One) I imagine that by the amount of time this series takes place, the characters will have gone somewhat far with their relationship, seeing how far the characters themselves have gone in the actual novel.**

**Two) For the lemon scenes though, I'll be honest, not exactly the best at that stuff. I'll hint here and there about things that have happened, but as far as the actual showing of it, I'd like to imagine if I was writing the actual story, in that the editors would be telling me not to go too far otherwise I'd want to boost the rating up (though it's already at 'M' because it gives me the most flexibility).**

**So yeah, don't expect lemons, just expect sex… if that means anything to you… Anyways, on to chapter 4!**


	4. Volume 1, Life 4

_**Volume 1, Life 4**_

Within a weakly-lit room sat a man on his couch, a remote in one hand, and a glass of his finest whisky in the other. Feeling comfortable in the leathery seat, and sipping the burning liquid, he flipped through the expensive television he had been watching for the past hour. He was a man who liked to relax when he could, but with the new school year starting, he was forced to go back to that human institution to act as a science teacher as he watched over his favorite pupils and test-subjects in Sacred Gears. But Sacred Gears were the last things on his mind in the recent weeks, as on the other side of the world, something had been brewing, and he hoped that the feeling deep in his stomach was wrong.

Switching to the closest news channel, he began to watch what was happening, absorbing all the information he could before switching to another channel to do the same thing.

"-_se joining us now, we bring you coverage live from a small village a few hours away from Milan, Italy, where more religious institutes seem to be coming under attack from an unknown terrorist gro-"_

"_-nt reports suggest that what was initially thought to be an anti-religious group is now being brought into question, as reports from Sweden are stating that the headquarters of an Atheistic group was set a blazed this past Saturday, though officials have yet to produce evidence if this attack was related to the mos-"_

"_-ee mosques and two synagogues over the square area of seventy-five kilometers were found to be burnt down in France this past weekend, with at least two hundred dead in the fires. Survivors were questioned by proper authorities, but so far police have yet to get answers. We bring yo-"_

"_-isdent Kinsley has stated that the US will be giving aid in trying to track down the group responsible for the attacks on churches in England earlier this month, after the attacks seemed to have spread to mainland Europe and to other religions as well. No new repor-"_

The man sighed as he leaned back in his seat, putting the remote down next to him and using that hand to run it through his hair, trying to calm himself as he sipped on some more of his beverage.

As he continued to watch the television, the phone that had been laying on the coffee table in front of him had begun to vibrate, indicating that someone was trying to contact him. Picking the phone up, he flipped it open to reveal only one letter in the glowing screen. 'B'.

Answering the call, he put the phone up to his ear. "Baraqiel." The man stated, already knowing who he was talking to. He knew though, that the call wasn't a social one. "I assume the institute has gotten more information on what's been going on?"

Though he couldn't see it, the man could hear the nod the Fallen Angel had given him, as he grunted to give him the answer. "Shemhazai managed to get in talks with Michael over the weekend, but apparently not even Heaven know all the details at the moment, Azazel. All we've been able to gather is that the attacks across Europe are indeed the same group of people each time. That, and that the attackers all seemed to have been elite warriors from the Vatican."

The Fallen Angel Azazel sighed as he put down his whiskey glass on a coaster and used his free hand to rub his forehead as the on-coming headache he was receiving was slowly beginning to emerge. "Meaning this is _our_ mess we're going to have to clean up." He groaned. "Do we have any leads on where these people are, who they are, or why they're doing this?"

"Not quite… We don't know how they're moving to one spot to another so quickly, but we're guessing it's some sort of teleportation system they have going on, meaning they could be anywhere at any point. As for who they are or why they're doing this, the Vatican has only been able to give us names…"

"_Just_ names?" Azazel asked, his brow raised. "Surely they would be able to know more than that."

Baraqiel on the other end had been silent for a few moments, trying to come up with a way to tell his friend the news in a delicate manner. "Azazel, it's… We don't think they need to tell us, because the defectors seem to have a master alchemist with them. That, and… they managed to steal something from the catacombs deep within."

Now _this_ was something Azazel needed to hear. "How? How did they get underneath? _What_ did they get?"

"The Vatican is still investigating that, but Shemhazai managed to get Michael to promise us to tell us once something is found. As for what they stole, it…"

* * *

><p>After serving the 'detention' he had received from Rossweisse, Issei managed to get to the clubroom without any other trouble delaying him, and by the time he had gotten there, it had been almost an hour and a half from when school had ended. He felt bad, running straight to the clubroom after such an event, but they both knew he couldn't stay for long.<p>

As he opened the door, he saw the usual suspects sitting or standing somewhere within the main room, with only a few missing. Ravel, Asia, Koneko, and the twins had been occupying the couches, while Rias was sitting in the main chair behind the only desk within the room, with her Queen standing right next to her, and Kiba standing only a few feet away from them. Issei guessed that Xenovia wasn't there because she had Student Council duties, and Irina was more than likely trying to help her friend out of good faith, though knowing her, the boy could only imagine she was screwing things up and making them worse. The only ones he was surprised to see not there were Gasper and Valerie, as well as Azazel who would usually occupy the corner and try to listen in on what reports had to be said.

Rias, who had her eyes closed the entire time as she reflected on the day that had gone by, opened them slowly as the boy entered the room, closing the door behind him. A smile seemed to indicate that she wasn't in any type of foul mood, which brought relief to the young devil who had just came in. Now all he needed to do was not let it slip that he may have been doing naughty things with Rias' other Rook.

"I apologize for being late." The boy said in his calmest manner. Though it seemed that everything was going to be alright, he had learned from the past that even the most tranquil moments could end up becoming the most dangerous ones. He went and took a seat next to Ravel, who had saved the seat just for him for when he arrived, and continued to look towards Rias, expecting her to say something. "U-Um… I-"

"Coming to school in bloodied and torn clothes, nearly causing a riot on school property, being late for class, and getting detention, all on your first day. That's quite the record, Issei."

Issei flinched as his betrothed criticized him for the events that had unfolded during the entire day, all while continuing to smile as though none of the things she said had happened. Her smile soon faded though as she sighed, picking up a manila-colored envelope with the only thing written on it was '_For Hyoudou Issei_', holding all the information on Kuroka that could be found, that had been sitting on the desk in front of her and handed it to Akeno, who delivered the folder to Issei's hands.

"_You needn't worry about what you did, Issei. Rias is upset at being hit on all day by boys at the college._" Akeno whispered to Issei, handing him the envelope and placing it on his lap. Needless to say, the boy was a bit jealous and annoyed to hear such a thing, internally wanting to meet the people would do such a thing, if only to confront them on staying away from his love.

"Akeno."

With brow twitching, Rias showed visible signs of being not-so-pleased with her Queen at that moment. "I'd appreciate it if you ceased with telling such slanderous lies." The King scolded.

"Ara, ara, but shouldn't it be the duty of the mistress to relieve her loved one of his stress? Ufufu."

Sighing once more at the double entendre, Rias couldn't help but feel like her closest friend was simply adding on to her own stress for that day. Ignoring the teasing, she turned her attention back to her Rook and Knight, while keeping an eye on Akeno as well, and spoke. "Akeno, Koneko, Yuuto? I'd like to ask you to leave the room for a few moments. What I have to talk about with Issei is a bit sensitive."

Without saying a word, all three members of the Gremory Peerage bowed respectfully, not wishing to go against their master's word and went into the other room adjacent to the main one. As the three left though, Asia raised her hand, a worried look on her face. "S-Should I leave too, Rias?"

Rias went back to smiling at the kind girl's words, believing her to be absolutely adorable. Though she could have said yes and have her leave the room, she didn't think it mattered much what she thought, as Asia was no longer hers. "It's not up to me to decide, Asia. Issei?" She turned to her fiancée. "You are her master now. It's up to you whether she stays or leaves for this discussion."

Seeing the girl begin to give her famous puppy-dog face towards Issei, the boy couldn't help but give in to the girl's demands. He cursed himself for not learning how to defend himself against such a potent attack. "I-It's fine! You can stay, I-I mean, it's not like what she hears is anything bad, right…? Right…?"

Rias could only shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know Issei. Being your master, I could have looked at the contents to see what's in it, as it's full within my rights to do so. I wanted to respect your privacy though, and haven't looked at what's inside it."

Issei nodded, understanding what she meant, and appreciating the honesty.

"Issei-"

He looked up at her.

"Y-Yes?"

With narrowed eyes and an unsmiling expression, which was accompanied by her most serious tone, she spoke. "Should you choose to take this path, there's no turning back. By helping her, you may end up staining your reputation, and even end up getting on the bad side of the public, or perhaps even worse. If you end up failing in the trial, not even I can help you. If you choose not to open that envelope though, we can forget this ever happened and you can go back to being Hyoudou Issei … Are you absolutely sure you wish to go forward with this?"

Issei paused, looking at the envelope, then back towards to Rias. He knew she said this not to persuade him against helping Kuroka, but rather, she said this because she honestly worried about him. She worried about the fallout of what would happen if the hero, the Oppai Dragon, ended up trying to make a Class-A criminal his Queen, of what the public would think about it. He knew though, that to turn back now meant lying to himself, and that was something he couldn't do.

Without saying another word, the boy opened up the envelope and pulled out the papers that were placed inside it. Rias, seeing Issei's answer, couldn't help but go back to smiling. This time, the smile was more than just for show, as she genuinely felt happy that he didn't run away in the end. It was his personality after all, and that was something she loved about him.

Issei shifted through the papers, quickly running his eyes through each page, before going on to the next one. He did this for several minutes, as no one inside the room said anything. The twins, who had been there the entire time, stared at the young boy as one of them sipped on tea they had received from Akeno quite a while ago, with Asia sitting right next to them and shifting uncomfortably in her seat as she waited for the news. Ravel, worried about her master, looked over his shoulder, trying to read the papers with him and pointing out important details that he should pay attention to.

Over and over, Issei looked at the papers. He needed to go over each and every one of them, as any information he could get about Kuroka in order to help her was crucial. As he continued reading though, his own feelings began to waver.

Theft, kidnapping, _murder_… These were simply some of the things that the papers he read accused the Nekomata of doing. Could what Ravel and Rias initially feared when he had told them the night before really be validated? After all, what besides being Koneko's sister and having a cruddy past did he really understand about the young woman? Perhaps… perhaps he was completely wrong about trying to help her…

No!

He shook his head of such delusions, and began going back to reading the papers. No matter what she had been accused of, he believed her. After all, would such a villain as these people made her out to be truly be as kind-hearted as the girl he had seen over the past year? Even in their first meeting, when she had technically tried to kill him and Rias, he could have marked that up to her being overprotective of her sister and truly wanting to become a family again. No, while she may take the extremes sometimes, he knew within his heart that the woman back at his house was not a true villain, not after all he had seen.

His reading of the legal papers was interrupted though, as everyone in the room could hear the sound of shoes running up the stairs just outside the clubroom. Within seconds, the door to the club burst open to show the Perverted Duo panting, Matsuda holding a cellphone in the air. "Objective… Complete…" He said between pants.

Issei's eyes widened at the exclamation, whilst everyone else just seemed to not be interested in what they had to say, or simply raised their brow in confusion.

"Issei. What are they talking about?"

The boy flinched once again as his main lover seemed to not know why the two 'idiots' suddenly burst through the clubroom door, claiming to complete their objective. Looking back at her, he could see she wasn't pleased at the sight. Arms crossed, eyebrow raised, it was the typical sign she wanted to know what was going on that instant.

"A-Ah, u-um, you see, um…"

"The idiots thought they could end up getting their own little harems by joining the club." Ravel explained instead. "Of course we said no, but they insisted on joining until the point of Asia-senpai telling them to get a picture of a ghost, which I'm sure they didn't."

"Your harsh words… may sting… but…"

"We did it…!"

The two perverts looked directly towards Issei, facing off the boy with gleeful smirks as they handed the device towards him. Taking the phone reluctantly, Issei almost wanted to break the thing in two before looking at it, if only to make sure that no such evidence existed. In fact, that's _exactly_ what he did with it, as he quickly snapped the expensive device at the hinge. "Oops." Issei said, obviously happy as he put the two sides on the coffee table, the phone never to be used again. "My fingers slipped."

"That wasn't very nice, Issei." Asia scolded, obviously not understanding why he did it. Ravel could only smirk triumphantly as her master did what he did.

"Bullshit your fingers slipped!" The bald pervert exclaimed, having caught his breath by then. "You just broke my fucking phone!" It was then that he realized the dire situation that happened. "The picture!" He yelled out, tears forming in his eyes as he fell onto his knees. "You bastard!"

His companion, however seemed to ignore his friend's suffering as he began to laugh on his own. This worried Issei, as he knew the pervert may have been a little loose in his head, but to suddenly laugh when all the evidence was suddenly destroyed? That wasn't something he felt comfortable with.

And he shouldn't have, as the second pervert managed to pull his own phone out of his school jacket, and opened it up for all to see. "I thought Issei may have done something to the picture in question, so I downloaded it onto my phone when I took Matsuda's phone to check the authenticity! Behold!"

Instead of getting the excited or astonished reaction he was expecting, Motohama had gotten a very surprised reaction instead. A reaction, in which Ravel seemed to be disgusted at what was being shown to her, Issei had become excited as he felt his blood begin to rush towards his nose, Asia becoming red in the face as she seemed to be unable to pull away from the picture, and Rias falling back into her seat and putting a hand up to her forehead, bewildered at how the Perverted Duo even managed to get out of bed in the morning. The twins, having been hidden from the Duo's line of sight thanks to Asia sitting in-between them, continued to sit back in their seats and sip tea while staring into space, ignoring their surroundings.

"You two really are disgusting…" Ravel muttered as she looked away from the picture, going back to the papers that Issei was still holding in his lap.

"W-What?"

"That isn't a ghost." Rias deadpanned.

The picture in question, was of one of the girls in the Kendo club, getting undressed as something seemed to be pulling at her panties, as her pale bottom was there for all to see. From far away, if you could even make out the picture in the first place, it was nothing more than a blur. For devils on the other hand, they could see it just fine, and it was because of that, that Rias and the others could easily see the string attached to the poor girl's panties, tugging away at it.

"I can see the fishing hook from back here."

"I-Impossible! We were sure that-"

"You wouldn't get caught?" Ravel finished. "Well, you were wrong."

"Idiot."

The entire room turned to look as the newest member of the discussion joined in. Issei could feel the corner of his lips being tugged on a bit as Lilith had just finished her tea, and looked at what all the fuss was about. When she saw that it had been nothing interesting, she turned back towards Rias, holding her cup up. "More, please."

Rias smirked as the immortal dragon demanded more tea. "Sure thing, Lilith. I'll also get some treats for you and Ophis as well. Akeno!"

Calling for her Queen, Akeno came out of the adjacent room, ready to hear her King's request. "Yes, Rias?"

"I believe Lilith is out of tea, and is requesting for some more. If it's not too much trouble, could you go get some, along with some treats for her and Ophis?"

Akeno bowed, initially ignoring the two intruders in the room as she prepared to fetch the sweets. "Should I prepare two more cups for our guests?" She asked, just in case.

"No, they should be leaving soon enough."

"H-Hold on!"

Rias turned towards Motohama, obviously displeased at the sudden interruption. "Are you wanting some sweets to go?" She asked politely, indicating that she wanted them to leave _immediately_.

Matsuda, who had been stunned by the fact that there had been two gothic lolis in the room the entire time, had his eyes glued to the girls, ignoring everything around room while he continually chanted about their presence. Motohama, on the other hand, was displeased that the plan that they had set in motion, a plan that they had been _sure_ would get them in, was so easily foiled.

"How…?"

"How what?" Rias asked.

"How is it that you were able to tell it was a fake?! We risked our lives trying to get this and outrun the Kendo club! There's no way somebody can see something as tiny as a fishing hook from all the way back there!"

Rias shrugged at the accusation, which was accompanied by the boy holding up his finger in similar way to a very famous lawyer. "Believe what you want, but I was able to see it. Besides, didn't you just prove that the picture was a fraudulent? Now, can you please leave the-"

"Hiiiiiiii-!"

For the second time that day, Issei managed to get a massive nosebleed as Gasper, who had been missing this entire time, came running out of the adjacent room with nothing but a skirt on and underwear underneath, covering his chest with his arms with tears in his eyes, running away from what everyone could only assume was some type of threat. Diving into Issei's arms, Gasper couldn't help but begin to bawl as Issei could feel himself getting aroused at the soft feeling of the Dhampir's skin being pressed against him, before trying to pinch himself and remind himself that Gasper was a boy. "Save me, Ise-senpai!"

"G-Gasber?" Issei managed to get through as he held both hands up his nose, trying to stop the bleeding from happening. "B-Bwat's wong?"

Trying to speak through his tears, the young boy could only manage to hiccup as he tried to answer his senpai, before going back to crying in Issei's arms again. The Perverted Duo, having been visibly aroused at the cross-dressing boy, both lost enough blood through their noses that they passed out and were dragged out of the room by Akeno while the Gasper-situation settled down. Unfortunately their chances of joining the Occult Research Club would be left for another day, as they would both be receiving rejection letters in their shoeboxes in the morning.

"Gasper~!"

At the sound of his name, the young Dhampir could feel his blood go cold and shivers go down his spine as froze up in Issei's lap. Everyone looked towards the entry way to the adjacent room to see the only other Dhampir that they knew of, Valerie. She had been wearing some revealing clothing suitable only for bed, smiling creepily as she walked towards the frightened second year. "Gasper~, come back. We aren't done playing yet~."

"What exactly were they 'playing'?" Ravel muttered to herself as she suddenly felt queasy looking at Valerie, her mind only able to come up with few conclusions. Issei on the other hand, thought he would be happy to see something like this happening if only to feel relieved about Gasper's feelings towards him, but with now seeing it in the flesh, he could only liken it as something like a fierce lioness hunting down a lost little sheep, ready to go in for the kill.

"No! I don't wanna!"

"U-Um, Valerie?" Issei interrupted, wiping the blood away from his nose. He ended up feeling a bit afraid as he stepped between the lioness and sheep metaphorically. "D-Don't you think you're taking this a bit too far…?" He asked, chuckling.

Stopping her approach towards what she considered a little brother, Valerie put a finger up to her chin, a quizzical look on her face. "Ara? But we were only playing board games." She answered happily.

"What type of board games ends up with a half-naked Gasper and a lingerie-clad woman in her 20's?!" Ravel asked out loud, not believing her ears.

"Strip-Mahjong."

Everyone in the room, besides the twins and perhaps Akeno, suddenly felt stupefied at the answer. Valerie, a woman who was supposed to have a sister-like figure, a _mother_-like figure to little Gasper, was smiling as she admitted to what could be considered a crime in most places.

Breaking the thin air by sighing and placing a hand up to her forehead once again, Rias decided that enough was enough. "Perhaps we should stop for now. Issei?"

"Yes?" He answered, breaking his gaze from Valerie.

"I want you to continue going over those papers in my room once we get back home where I can help you some more and tell you the court date, understood?" She asked, to which Issei answered by nodding once.

"W-Wait! Why does it have to be in your room?!" Ravel asked, suspicious of the red-headed King.

"Because there are things besides the court issue that I need to talk to Issei about, in _private_. Does that satisfy your question, Ms. Phenex?"

Ravel opened her mouth, ready to counter. When she couldn't come up with the words though, she felt like she had no right to butt into _everything_ in Issei's life. She slowly closed her argument by harrumphing and crossing her arms, obviously not happy about having to leave the manager work to Rias.

"Good to see you understand. As for you Ms. Valerie, I'd appreciate it if you didn't spook my adorable little Bishop for the rest of the day."

"But we were only having fun." Valerie complained, but agreed to letting Gasper go in the end, giving up her plans to play with the boy more.

With no more interruptions, or giving any chances for such things happening, Rias called the club meeting for the day. In the end, Asia, who was technically the club president still, hadn't even been able to begin her position and would have to wait for the following day.

* * *

><p>Within the halls of the Vatican, two people were strolling along, weary of those who were around them as they spoke of highly-classified information. The first was a man in his late fifties, wearing a red and white gown, signaling himself as a Cardinal Bishop of the Church, and a high-ranking official within. The second was a woman of younger state who looked like she hailed from Northern Europe, wearing her nun's outfit, walking side-by-side with the man. It may have looked out of place to outsiders, but the woman was more than just a sister, as she was a representative of Heaven itself. She was Griselda Quarta, and the Queen of the most beautiful woman in Heaven, Gabriel the Seraph, indicated by the 'Q' branded on the back of her hand.<p>

Griselda was the first to speak, looking for answers that would satisfy her superior. "What do we know of the attackers…?" She asked in a low voice, aware that though the Vatican knew who it was that was doing the attacks, they had yet to release names to anyone, including those in Heaven.

The man, while silent, could only shake his head, letting two passerby's go by them and go well out of hearing range before telling her what he knew. "We couldn't figure the names of all who had betrayed the Church. From what we can tell, the defectors numbered more than two hundred, and most of them had worked in the shadows, their names to never be recorded in history." The man answered with a grim expression. "While we don't know all their names, we believe that they, as a group, have taken on a name of an organization of old as we believed that they had worked in secret for the past seven hundred years."

Intrigued, Griselda's brow raised. "How is it that the Church is just _now_ finding this out?"

Again, the man shook his head, now knowing how to answer the reincarnated angel. "They… covered their tracks too well…" He sighed. "After what they felt was a betrayal by the Church in 1307 after their brothers were tortured and killed by the King of France, remnants of the organization seemed to have gathered in mystery. The only reason why we've found out about this now is-"

"Because they seemed to have flaunted themselves in public, now that they have betrayed the Church." Griselda answered for him, to which the man solemnly nodded.

"… I know we have done terrible things in the past, Sister Griselda. We are, unfortunately, only human. I have worked with the church since I was a young boy, and not once have I ever felt proud of the terrible things we have done!" He emphasized by a stomp of his foot, stopping in his tracks as he turned to the sister, facing her directly. "But this…! They claim to hold the virtues and values of the Knights of Old, but they burn the monasteries of the Church and the institutes of other religions! They slaughter innocent civilians as they claim they do it in the name of God!" The man whispered harshly as he became flustered, thinking of all the innocent lives that had been taken simply because of the actions of a few.

Knowing the man's frustration all-too-well though, Griselda could only sigh. "If you truly believe what you are doing is for the best of your creator, then all your actions, down to the most heinous ones, will feel justified… But we are not here to argue about whether or not what these people are doing are justifiable, but rather, I am here to gather their names, Father." She spoke in a stricter tone, trying to her best to make the Father realize his mistakes and get him back on track.

"Apologies, Sister, you are right." He whispered, turning back in front of him as he continued to walk along in the corridors. "Whilst we don't know the names of many of them, we've managed to find the names of three that were the ones who had orchestrated the revolt captured the item within the catacombs."

"Oh…?"

The man nodded. "The first, is a young woman in her late teens from France who goes by the name of 'Danette'. An excellent swordsman if our intelligence is correct, and to make matters worse, she's been called to be the modern day version of Joan D'Arc, as she's been said to have the power of Clairvoyance. It's also said that she wields a holy blade, though we don't know which."

"Making her incredibly dangerous in the art of battle." Griselda commented, to which the Cardinal Bishop acknowledged by nodding once again.

"The second, is an older man around your age, and comes from Portugal who goes by the name 'Emanuel'. Though he claims to be a man of the church, he is someone of much different standing, having gotten rid of his celibacy at the age of sixteen. He seems to take pleasure in the sadistic nature of taking advantage of women unfortunate enough to cross his path, and harming anything that lives and breathes. Because of this, he had been ex-communicated a long time ago, but he seemed to have stuck around as a freelance exorcist despite the warnings from the Church to give up his faith. As such, he's become a most proficient warrior after hunting down those who he deemed unworthy of God's love." The man spat in disgust.

Griselda flinched at the tone of which the Bishop spoke of the man. It seemed that the Portuguese man was someone that couldn't be taken lightly, though she believed not of these people could be. "And the third…?"

For the last time, the Bishop shook his head. "We don't know much about this last one besides where he came from. Coming from Austria, or so he proclaims, he calls himself 'The Sword of Lützen' or 'Ferdinand's Hand', pretty much shortening it to the Emperor's name. Other than the names indicating he may have been interested in the Thirty Years' War, he seems to have always worn a suit of armor, covering his entire body, and as such, no one truly knows what his face looks like."

This time, Griselda sighed, putting a hand up to her forehead. "So an unknown…" She said with a bit of an annoyed tone. Then again, she couldn't have very well asked for miracles to have happened and have the Church give her all the information she needed. Trying her best to smile, she turned towards the Father, and gave a small bow. "Very well, Cardinal, you have been most useful on this day. I shall go back to Heaven and report to Lady Gabriel of the changes that have happened. I'm sure that very soon, the three powers and DxD shall be going to war with these 'Black Templars'…"

* * *

><p>Back at the house, everyone had managed to go back to their respective rooms, resting from the day that had finished in their own way. Asia, Xenovia, Irina, Koneko, and Ravel, were all sitting around in Issei's room, studying away in their own fashion as they helped one another with the homework they had received. Akeno, who had been tasked with making dinner that night, was bent over in the refrigerator, looking for some chocolate pudding she had made the night before to be used as the dessert, not knowing that a certain devious cat had devoured the entire bowl earlier in the day, and was now sleeping the fat off in her room a floor below.<p>

Meanwhile, Issei was in what he would call an Otaku's dream, as the room he was currently sitting in had figurines, games, anime, manga, and anything else you could associate with the modern Japanese culture ranging from the early 1960's to the previous anime season. It saddened him a bit too, because he knew that despite there being so many Otaku relics around him, this was only a fraction of the things that Rias owned, with most of her goods back in her room in the Underworld. Speaking of the red-headed devil though, it wasn't the goods around him that Issei was currently unable to focus on the papers in front of him, but rather, he could hear the sound of running water within the room next to Rias'.

Yes, shortly after coming home and bringing Issei to her room, Rias had taken her clothes off in the middle of the room despite Issei's protests, threw them in the nearby hamper, and went into the adjacent bathroom to take a shower. All of this, and it was causing Issei to have problems in his lower body, as all he could focus on was the pure-blood's goddess-like body, and the fact that he had gotten glimpse of something, something that made him conclude that the only hair on Rias' body was on top of her head. He honestly never knew that such a sight could make him so happy, even if he didn't fully understand why. Perhaps it was because the only other one he's gotten a good look at would be Rossweisse's, and noticed that she only had a tiny strip lined up there…

He shook his head, knowing that the current moment wasn't to be thinking of such things. He knew that no matter what, the girls were all beautiful in their own way, and to be with them in bed… And there he went again, thinking of erotic things when he should have been focusing on the papers in front of him.

After several moments of fighting himself and his erotic thoughts, Issei heard the running water in the other room stop, with the sound of a metal knob being turned accompanying it. Seconds later, the goddess of Issei's harem had come out of the bathroom, rubbing her crimson hair dry with the limited edition "Switch Princess" towel she had received from her brother.

Issei, who had turned to look at Rias coming out of the bathroom, quickly turned back to the papers, trying to get his mind off the fact that once again, he had seen Rias in the nude. He heard the footsteps of Rias coming closer and closer to the desk he had been sitting at, and all that was running through his mind was trying to hold himself back from pouncing on her in her vulnerable state, and fulfilling his birthday promise right there.

As he thought that, the feeling of something soft and a bit wet landed on his left shoulder, as crimson hair draped itself into his peripheral vision. He could smell the alluring scent of the shampoo that Rias always wore, and the breath of his lovely betrothed hit his hand that had been laying on the papers.

"Have you made any progress?" She asked, placing her hand on his own, before moving it off the papers to take a closer look at them. Rather than giving her an audible answer though, the boy could only shake his head, as his peeked towards his left, looking at her supple breasts and protruding nipples. "Are you stuck somewhere? Is there something you don't understand?"

Issei opened his mouth, wanting to give her the answers she sought. He opened it, but rather than doing that, he did the unthinkable, or perhaps the completely expected, and turned the swerving chair he was sitting in and grabbed Rias by the waist, pulling her into it with him. She let out a yelp as her inner thighs landed on his leg, his head buried between her breasts, sucking on one of her nipples as he grabbed the other breast with his hand. The attack, having come out of nowhere, both shocked and made Rias feel a bit aroused as Issei continued to do his thing. She also knew, that should this go any further, she may very well end up giving him his birthday present too soon. Raising her hand weakly, she managed to get it above Issei's head, and quickly struck down, knocking the boy out of his attack.

She quickly stood up and backed away, using the towel that had fallen to the ground in the attack and wrapped it around her body, pouting towards the boy. "Mou, why did you have to do that Issei?"

"B-But! You! Beautiful! Bouncy!" It was all he could get out, as tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

It wasn't the chop she had delivered to his head that was causing him to tear up, but rather, it was the fact that he was regretting letting the chance of a lifetime slip through his fingers so quickly. Even though it was only a few seconds, it had felt like a few hours to him, as he managed to taste the sweet flavor of his darling honey.

"I told you to wait until your birthday, didn't I? It's only a couple of week away… Besides, you haven't keeping your promise, have you Issei?"

At the sound of Rias becoming more serious, Issei's eyes widened as she said that. "E-Eh? I-I have n- R-Rias?!"

This time, it was Rias who took the initiative. Even though she said she wanted to wait until his birthday, it didn't mean she couldn't tease her cute little Pawn like she usually did. Sitting down on his leg properly this time, she sat with her back to his chest, wrapping her right arm around his head and pushing it towards her own, and blew into his ear as she interrogated him on something that she knew of for not that long at all. "Tell me, Issei… What have you been doing with Rose recently?"

"… Eh?"

"I know you Issei." She pressed on, turning her body around and facing him directly, pressing her own chest up against his. If she wanted answers, she knew exactly how to get them. "I've noticed that you haven't touched your porn collection in recent days. The waste basket that used to be filled up with tissues in the one of the extra rooms hasn't been used at all lately. Not to mention, I haven't heard you screaming out our names while you're all alone in your room in the past few weeks."

Issei managed to blush on that last one, unaware that Rias had seemed to catch him in his most private times. It made him wonder a bit if she managed to pleasure herself as well when he was doing it. It didn't last for too long though, as his wild imagination was interrupted as Rias placed her hands on his cheeks, forcing him to look at her. "Issei-"

"I-I have no clue what you're talking about, Rias. Ehehehe…" Issei averted his eyes from the scorching glare that Rias was giving him as he lied away.

When it looked like he wasn't going to give the answers she wanted, Rias let out a frustrated sigh, taking her hands off his face and getting off his leg, taking a few steps away from him. Turning around to have her back facing the boy, she let out another sigh, but only because she was going to say something she was going to regret deeply. "T-That's too bad. And here I thought perhaps I could have given my adorable little Pawn a t-treat, shortly before his birthday for telling me the truth…"

The reason for turning away from the boy, and the reason for the 'treat' was because if Issei was doing what she thought he was doing with her Rook, she was going to do whatever it took to get him back, even if meant doing something incredibly embarrassing and having her face become as crimson as her hair. The Oppai Dragon seemed to take the bait though, for when she proclaimed that she was willing to give him a treat, his brain refused to take no for an answer. Even though he knew there could be large repercussions for him and Rossweisse, for the chance of being able to get some sort of pleasurable thing from Rias, there was no backing away from it. Quickly getting off the swerving chair, and immediately getting on his knees and hands, he bowed down before her, apologizing profusely.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Hearing him apologize so harshly, Rias couldn't help but be interested in what he was about to say, as her ears perked up and turned her head a bit to see the boy down on the ground. "Oh…? And what, exactly, are you sorry about?"

"The study sessions! They were originally about helping me study, b-but then, Rose! She said she wasn't feeling like I wasn't paying enough attention to her!"

"So…? What does not paying enough attention to her have to do with apologizing to me?"

"B-Because, I…! She said we wouldn't get anywhere with just going on dates, so she suggested w-we…!"

"We what…?" Rias asked, brow raised.

"Thatweexperiementwitheachother!"

That answer, while it was something that Rias had expected, definitely didn't mean it didn't hurt when she heard it. She didn't know is she was to blame herself for letting Issei run wild, or Issei, for being the massive horny teen that he was. Either way, she probably should have expected like this to happen sooner or later, considering the boy's dream was to have a harem after all, and after realizing the girls around him…

She shook her head, not wanting to dwell on things that had already happened. Although Issei admitted that the two had been experimenting with each other, it didn't exactly spell out exactly what they all had done. If she wanted to know if his precious virginity stayed intact, she would have to ask directly.

"How far…?"

Issei raised his head, thinking he had heard his beloved wrong. "Eh…?"

"How far did you two go…?" She asked a little bit louder, back still turned towards him.

The boy didn't want to answer that, in fear of what would happen. He knew he had to though, otherwise, not answering would only bring the worst out. "I… We… I…"

[He's still a virgin, if that's what you're asking.]

Both Issei and Rias turned towards his left arm, where the dragon inside resided. Since the end of school, he had been completely silent, making Issei think he was asleep. Turns out, he was just minding his own business the entire time, not exactly giving out his thoughts whenever something happened.

"What do you mean?" Rias asked the dragon, not wanting to give away that it was all she cared about.

[It's obvious you're only interrogating my partner here because you're worried he may have done it with somebody else before you. I'm telling you that hasn't happened. The idiot has only managed to seduce the Valkyrie in the art of pleasuring each other via hands and mouth.]

"… Is this true, Issei?"

Seeing that his partner was actually trying to help him out, Issei nodded once, before getting back on his hands and knees and apologizing again. "I'm sorry Rias. I should have told you what was going on. It was entirely my fault, as I was too stupid to see the damage this has caused between us."

Seeing him so regretful for the mistakes he made, it made Rias smile a bit. Oddly enough, it also reminded some words that her mother had once told her regarding the boy, which, in this context, could only make sense. Getting onto her knees as well, she brought her hand to the boy's forehead as he looked up after being told to do so, and lightly flicked it, sticking her tongue out as she saw him a bit confused at the punishment he had just received. With that done, she stood back up, walking towards her dresser as she spoke to him about more punishments to come.

"Because you didn't tell me, Issei," she spoke, "Not only do you not get your special treat tonight, but perhaps I should end up giving you your birthday present a few months from now instead of on your actual birthday as well." Hearing that, Issei had begun to break down in tears. He knew that Rias was a devil, but never in his life, did he ever imagine her to be evil. Of course, whilst he was crying and banging the floor in frustration, cursing the world for being unfair, he didn't hear her mutter under her breath, "Or, I'll just have to wait and see what you've learned in two weeks. After all, mother did say I should be the one responsible for your harem, and learning new things for it is just one of those things…"

For the rest of the night, Issei had been in a miserable mood, believing his precious gift wouldn't be waiting for him on his eighteenth birthday. He would eventually find out the truth shortly before bed though, when Rias had told him the court date, the same day as his birthday…

* * *

><p><strong>And there's chapter 4 of Volume 1. I should thank Naughty_Ranko for giving me the idea of the "Black Templars", as it was probably a much better idea than using the actual Knights Templar that I had initially thought of using, to which I knew almost nothing of :P<strong>


	5. Volume 1, Life 5

_**Volume 1, Life 5**_

Within a ruined citadel in Western Europe, life was stirring once again in the abandoned stronghold. Men and women of various countries, of differing heritages and origins, worked together to build towards something they believed was right. Although many of them could not speak the same language and understand one another, they all knew that they were with allies, as they all wore the dress of their organization.

The 'Black Templars' as they were called, presented themselves with a pitch black surcoat, representing the ashes of their fallen comrades so long ago, when they had been falsely accused and burned at the stake. The Croix _Pattée _accompanied it, just like it had in the old days, though many of them more than likely had since lost the meaning behind its origin. It did not matter though, as old traditions would die, and new ones would be born. With that in mind, they would cleanse the world of those they deemed evil, destroy the very corruption that plagued their lands, and bring forth a new era of peace and prosperity. The alliance between the three great powers would fall, and Heaven would be fit to rule once again.

One of the people responsible for bringing this unknown order to light and helping them break away from the very foundation that had betrayed them again and again after learning of the Great Treaty, looked down up from one of the higher towers in the citadel, watching her comrades toil away in the spring sun with the feeling of it pierced her leather armor, as her weapon and shield laid still leaning against the wall. Her golden blonde hair, tied back in a ponytail, blowing in the wind as she waited for her newest companions to reveal themselves to think up of a plan to strike the enemy once again. Her sparkling emerald eyes, something once filled with great joy, were now missing something important. Her innocence, lost since long ago, her stoic and unfeeling expression now filling the void as she tried her best to remember the faces of those she had cut down since she had started this holy war.

The girl turned her head away from the window she was watching out of as she heard the door to the medieval room she had been sitting in opened. Jumping off the window ledge, her feet landed with a metal clanging noise, as she wore not shoes, nor boots, nor any type of armor made for battle. She instead wore ice skates, mastering the ability of standing in them and having absolute balance. It was simply one of the many oddities of this group, as she believed that if she had a moments chance to kick the enemy, that it should cut them in the end, instead of just simply bruising them.

"You are late, Emanuel." The girl said, her voice fitting her bored expression as she laid eyes on the man who had come through the door.

The man named Emanuel. Darker in skin tone than his comrades, his body was covered in armor from the early days of Medieval Era, and a chainmail coif covering his head to protect from on-coming attacks. Carrying a large hammer over his shoulder, he had a most unpleasant smirk on his face, as though everything in his life was nothing but a joke. "Well, if it isn't little Ms. Bitchette, complaining 'bout the times I be coming and going."

Rather than indulge in her compatriot's rude behavior, the girl named Danette simply ignored his insult, sitting down at the wooden table that was placed in the middle of the room, with Emanuel sitting right across from her as he took his own seat. A large map of Europe was sprawled across the table, with the names of various locations in the countries circled, and some places crossed out.

"Where is Ferdinand?" She asked, noticing that their third and final member was missing, believing he had been with the most foul one.

Emanuel simply shrugged, the sound of his heavy armor jangled around. "How the fuck should I know? I'm not his babysitter."

"**Nor would I ever ask for you to be**." A third but heavy voice chimed in, breaking the bickering of the two comrades and bringing their attention to the door once again. Emanuel could be heard muttering something about giant armored people and sneaking up on him.

Standing in the doorway stood a large man, well above the average height. His entire body had been covered in the heavy plate armor of the past as a Templar's helm sat upon his head, hiding his face from the world. There had been some speculations of what he looked like inside, but with the tiny slits that were in the helm, no one could even get a good look at what eye color he had, let alone what skin color he had or even what features he had. He was a complete mystery, even to his closest allies.

"**I apologize for the delay, Danette, but it seems our spies within the enemy organizations have yet to find any useful information about their most fierce fighters**." Ferdinand explained, before pulling out a parchment had had tucked away in his surcoat, and unrolling it on the table for all to see. "**As for the resurrection though, it seems that the alchemists are still missing a few key components**."

Danette and Emanuel looked over the parchment that had been set out in front of them, closely reading it, before Emanuel eventually gave up, complaining that he didn't understand any of it nor should it really matter to him. Danette, on the other hand, continued to read. As she continued reading though, she noticed something worrisome of the items.

"Many of these are near impossible to retrieve." She said, looking up at Ferdinand, who had nodded in response.

"**So you've noticed. Yes, unfortunately most of these are well far from our grasp. With our group now moving, the chances of the Catholic Church strengthening their defenses may be a thing**."

"Which is why I say we just go and bash that old man's head in at the Vatican and take our revenge already!" Emanuel proclaimed, throwing hands in the air as he lifted his hammer high as well. "The old fart ain't exactly going to wait around for us, so we may as well take the invitation while they're still too stupid to find out what our plans are!"

"**We will get there one day, Emanuel, but now is not the time. You must not forget, the Vatican is a highly fortified position within the city of Rome. To march in there now, with the numbers we have, would be a death sentence for our people**." Ferdinand countered, pointing his finger to the parchment on the table. "**That is why we must continue our attacks on the smaller targets. With our word about saving Heaven once again reaches the ears of others, more will bound to come to our aid. And when we do get enough, attacking the more fortified positions that contain these ingredients will be simple**."

"And how the fuck do you know that, Mr. Know-it-all?" Emanuel said as he put his tongue out at the armored man, not caring if he looked like an absolute child for doing so.

"**Because already members are coming to our aid from the New World, along with those from Eastern Europe**." Ferdinand said. "**Our group has gone from a little under twenty to over three hundred in this past month. At this rate, we shall attack Canterbury, and claim the prize inside**."

Emanuel looked back at the parchment, smirking a bit as he read what it was that had been guarded at the cathedral. "The ear of a Freybug? Hah! We may as well just go to those blasted lands and kill ourselves a pooch there instead of going through such hard work!"

"The Freybug dogs were hunted out of existence for almost four hundred years now." Danette explained, continuing to read the parchment. "The remains of the one buried beneath the Canterbury Cathedral is one of the few remaining in this world." Emanuel threw a few more insults towards Danette for making him out to be a fool, who in return simply decided to ignore them all, already thinking of various battle plans for the upcoming assault once they were to be ready for it and asking Ferdinand for advice.

"**Perhaps, Danette, but perhaps it would not have to come to that either." **He explained. **"As I said, our spies have yet to find out about the people we face, but they have found out about something I believe shall make the resurrection easier**."

"Pff, what, did they find the Grail?" Emanuel jested, rolling his eyes as he referenced the Cup of Life. It was a well-known artifact, and thought to be lost for a long time.

"**Not quite, but it is in the possession of the enemy**." Ferdinand retorted, causing Emanuel to double-take as he looked at his armored comrade in disbelief. Danette, on the other hand, simply raised her brow in interest.

"And how exactly did they come across this information?" She asked, not wanting to believe something so simple could be in their grasp soon enough.

"**I'm not quite sure, but apparently it was in the hands of the son of Lucifer, before he was killed in battle when he opposed the Great Three. We can only assume that they took it from him after his defeat. This is simply another reason why we cannot go head on with these people just yet, Emanuel**." He said, emphasizing on the previous Devil King's son being killed so easily. "**That does not mean it can be any easier though. In fact, retrieving the Grail might be a far greater task than to retrieve these items**."

"But it could be a much more fun experience, as well." Emanuel said with a grin. "I believe we should ignore these fools and their stupid alchemy, and focus on killing the bastards who control the Grail."

"We would need to train our troops though, and perhaps continue retrieving Sacred Gears to help make them more powerful." Danette interrupted. "What of the Brazilian girl and her newest weapon?" She asked, looking towards Ferdinand, who once again nodded.

"**You speak of the Puppeteer. From what I hear, she has no experience in actual fighting, but her skills in magical abilities are unparalleled to the rest of her group. Do you believe we should give her a trial**?" He asked, and Danette agreed.

"I will bring her on the next run we make then. A few hours away on foot, there is a small village protected by some fallen angels who have been sniffing around for information. It should be easy killings, and we should be able to destroy the heathens with them. If we leave tomorrow before sunrise, we should make it within the early dawn."

"**Very well, then… We shall continue our hunt for more Sacred Gears, and hope to equip our group with weapons capable of fighting off our enemies. If everything goes well, we should find ourselves attacking Canterbury within the month. As for the Grail, I shall have the spies look into it further. Meeting adjourned. May God be with you, brother and sister**."

With a salute across the chest, all three stood up, ending the meeting that would begin a new era of war.

* * *

><p>"What did he do to you, Kuroka?"<p>

That had been the question Issei asked himself over and over for the past two weeks, as he sat at his desk in his room, rummaging through all the information he had on her. Having read over all the information he was given about the Nekomata over and over, he was slowly beginning to understand what she had been through. At least, that was what he wanted to tell himself, but the sad truth was that despite learning that most of the horrible things she had done was under her previous master, it still didn't paint the entire picture. Key pieces to the portrait were still missing, and the cat had refused to open up to him in the past two weeks.

He heard the door to his room click open, with someone stepping inside shortly afterwards, closing the door once again after entering the room. He pretended to ignore the person who had come in, knowing that he would soon find out who it was as he continued his rummaging.

"Here," a sweet and comforting voice said as they laid a teacup near his hand, using their other hand to rub his back as they tried their best to soothe his stress, "I thought you'd like to take a break." Issei smiled and nodded, taking the offered cup and bringing it close to his lips. Upon drinking the bitter liquid, he did indeed end up feeling a bit more relaxed, feeling like all of his worry was slowly melting away.

"Thank you, Akeno… Did Rias or Ravel tell you to do this?" He asked, unsure of what those two had been up to.

Though it had been a secret at the start, it was slowly revealed throughout the house that Issei had been planning to make Kuroka his Queen, and that he was working hard on trying to clear her name. The majority of the girls were understandable and did not want to stand in his way of decision making, with Koneko being the only exception.

At first, he was sure that it was because she was still upset about her sister for all those years, but as time went by, it became clear that she was upset at Issei for choosing to pick her sister over her for his spot for Queen. Almost like an actual kitten pouting, he tried his best to soothe her by petting her gently, telling her that she could become his Rook one day when she got older, before Rias ended up cutting in and scolding Issei for trying to steal all her pieces away. The white Nekomata would have to give up her dream of being in Issei's peerage.

"Rias is in Asia's room next door, helping her on how to run the club, and Ravel is in her own room, studying. They have no clue that I'm here right now, ufufu." She said with a chuckle.

Unfortunately, Issei had been too focused on trying to clear Kuroka's name, that he had practically ignored the advances the girls had given him for the past two weeks. As such, they were beginning to get antsier, and were wanting for him to pay attention to them once again.

"I see. Well, thank you for the tea, Akeno. I appreciate it." He said taking another sip.

"Is that all you want to thank me for?" She asked seductively, leaning closer to him as her cheer became close to his own. "There _are_ other ways I can help you, Issei."

"Hmm? Like what?" He asked, still focusing on the paper. That focus would stop though, as the sudden feeling of his thigh being given a small squeeze from Akeno's soft and tender hand made him lose concentration. "A-Akeno…?"

"Oh, I can think of a few ways, ufufufu~. All we have to do is keep it a secret from Rias~."

"And how, exactly, would that help you?"

Both Issei and Akeno stopped what they were doing before they could even go anywhere, turning to look towards the door that connected Asia's and Issei's room. In an almost predictable manner, Rias, who was beginning to become red in the cheeks not from embarrassment or even lust, but from anger, was standing in the doorway. Tapping one of her feet up and down, and with crossed arms, she had her eyes closed as she restrained herself from lashing out against her best friend for advancing on her Issei.

"Ara? Done already, Rias?" Akeno asked with a pleasant tone, though on the inside, she could only feel the exact opposite, as once again her advances were halted before they had gone anywhere. "Or perhaps you felt that your precious Issei was about to be finally taken?"

"Akeno, out." Rias said as she pointed towards the door that led to the hallway.

"Is that an order? Or a suggestion?"

It was obvious Akeno was going to stand her ground, as she hadn't been able to play with her cute kouhai for the longest time. With it being the day before his eighteenth birthday, she too had wanted to give Issei the ultimate present. If possible, before Rias was the best.

"I'm not playing these games with you, Akeno." Rias stated flatly, continuing to point towards the door. "Either you leave now, or in the name of the house of Gremory, I will punish you for daring to go against your master."

Though she said in a cool and calm manner, it was obvious that Rias was starting to become more agitated at her friend with each ticking second. With the declaration she had made about taking Issei's first time on his birthday, it seemed that not just Akeno, but _all_ the girls around him were starting to become more aggressive by the day. If she hadn't acted soon enough in keeping a close eye on him, the chances of his precious first being taken away by someone else was very likely.

"Ara ara, she's becoming scary." Akeno in a fake intimidated voice, before wrapping her arms around Issei and pressing his head close to her chest, enraging Rias more. Although the boy's oxygen supply was being cut off for Akeno's own selfish needs, each time this happened to him, he couldn't help but feel like he was in Shangri-La. "Issei, please, save me from the mean old-"

"**ENOUGH!**"

Glass showered the floor of Issei's room as the television resting on the wall inexplicably exploded. Though it was an item that could easily be replaced, Issei couldn't help but feel the waste in it being destroyed in what was another of Rias' outrages for not having time with him.

All three froze in their spots, as none of them knew how to react. Rias, having never really shown this much anger before, stood in place, mentally calming herself down before she did something else she would regret. Akeno had been her best friend for the longest time, and while the priestess may be in love with the same man that the red-haired devil was in love with, it still didn't mean that perhaps she may have overstepped her own line when the television blew up.

Akeno, still grasping Issei, paused for her own moment. She had seen the Crimson Ruin Princess angry, _infuriated_ even, multiple times. This time was one of the few that she actually took it with caution. To avoid breaking their long-lasting friendship over something so trivial, Akeno coughed, gaining the attention of the other two devils within the room.

Walking gracefully away from Issei, she made her way to the door, pausing shortly before leaving the room. "I suppose I will take my leave here today… But Rias, let it be known that should you continue putting something so important off, that _I_ might not be the one who will end up taking said important thing away…"

With that, the priestess left the two lovebirds alone, hopefully to let them continue on where _she_ had left off.

Rias had been waiting to save this moment for his birthday, but with how active the other girls were becoming due to the fact that it had become so close to his birthday, it seemed she had no other choice but to show her dominance against the other members. She chose to quickly take her chance now as opposed to later as she pushed the stunned Issei onto the bed nearby. She regretted having let Rose go unpunished for getting ahead of her and doing certain things with Issei, but she knew what Akeno said had also been true.

The two began to kiss passionately as Issei slowly broke out of his numbness, and began to understand the feelings that Rias was going through as he felt her warmth next to his. Being busy with making out, they had failed to notice two little black ears poking out of the side of the bed, with two little yellow eyes watching them intently that had snuck into the room much earlier than they had known.

Issei, with finally giving up his reasoning for holding back any longer, decided to take lead and began to do what he thought was only natural, by flipping Rias onto her back and being the one to pin her instead. With a gulp of anticipation, his eyes looked over the clothed but beautiful body that laid before him numerous times, undressing each piece in his mind. "Rias…" He whispered, hoping for a sign that would allow him to continue further. With a breathless nod from her, he began to lift the simple blouse she wore, exposing the milky white skin underneath and eventually the titillating lingerie she wore to cover her breasts. Issei began to breathe harder as he stared at the bosom surrounded by the delicate cloth meant to entice him, and began to imagine the amount of fun he was about to have with them.

"Nyah~"

Both Issei and Rias froze in their spot as they picked up the sound of a cat meowing nearby. Knowing only two cats in their entire lives though, it meant that they couldn't exactly ignore it, as they both turned their heads towards the spot in which they heard the noise coming from. Of course, they ended up staring back at a pair of golden orbs, as they could make out two tails swishing back and forth in anticipation, and two black ears twitching about in excitement. The cat, having felt being caught, ducked her head below the line of sight of the devils, only for her tails to be the only thing visible as they continued to dance around. "Just ignore me, nyah~" She called out, hoping the two devils would continue with their decision.

"Kuroka…" Issei said softly, letting out the breath he seemed to have been holding for a while as he got off of Rias and sat up next to her. Rias on the other hand, was beginning to tear up, something she wanted once again interrupted right before it started to get good. She questioned herself if she ended up getting cursed by an ancient deity or some demon did as part of their revenge for her killing them in her line of work, because she honestly couldn't believe that she had this much bad luck on purpose. It was probably the first time she actually understood how Issei felt each time she barged in on him and one of the other girls.

"What are you doing, Kuroka?" Issei questioned, looking at the two dancing cat tails as they suddenly stopped, her head poking up above the line of the bed.

"You said you wanted to see me, nyah~" She answered in a simple way, smiling widely. Stretching her body and cracking bones in a comfortable manner, she stood up and she fully presented herself, no longer afraid of being caught by the 'idiot couple'. "What did you need, nyah?" She asked, ignoring the fact the entire question of what she had been doing inside his room.

"What did I…? Oh, that's right!"

Climbing off the bed and going back to the desk nearby, muttering something about glass in his feet before handing a load of papers to the cat. "This." He said, not explaining anything.

She tilted her head, unsure of what he wanted still. "…Nyah?"

"I've gone over these papers a million times, Kuroka, but I still don't know what happened. Tomorrow is the court case, and I need _your_ help! Rias and Ravel have told me about how the devil court system works, and from the sounds of it, they expect me to do just fine, but I still need to know Kuroka. What did Lord Azhul do to you that caused you to betray him?" He asked, demanding to know the answers. If he wanted any chance of telling the judge of how it was he believed she was reformed, then he needed to know what it was that caused her flip and kill her previous master.

The cat didn't seem cooperative though, as she looked away, bending her ears down and muttering, "It was for Shirone…"

"Yes, but how? How was it done for Koneko? What did he do to _you_ that caused you believe that Koneko would be in grave danger?" He pushed, hoping for the answer. When it came evident that she wouldn't budge though, his hands shook in frustration. He wanted to grab her by the shoulders and force her, but he knew it would only frighten her more, making it less likely for her to give him the information. "Kuroka, please…"

"He… did things to me, nyah…"

"What things?" He asked again."What did he do?!"

"Issei, if you don't calm dow-"

"You wouldn't understand, nyah!"

Kuroka pushed Issei away, clearly distressed from being interrogated. What was usually a happy and cheerful person was being reduced to a shivering mess as she was being forced to remember her past. She wanted to escape, and had begun to run towards the door, only for Issei to catch her arm and hold her back. "Kuroka, please!"

"No, nyah! You wouldn't understand!"

"Why, why wouldn't I understand?!" He screamed, taking on the claw attacks coming from the cat once again as he held his grip firmly.

"Because…! Because…" She said over and over.

The more she struggled in his grasp, the more the yukata that had usually been so loose around her but still clung to her body due to the yellow sash that she wore around her waist, slowly began to fall off as Issei and Rias managed to see her back in a clearer state. Once the yukata came loose enough to see her entire back, it had been an understatement that both Issei and Rias were shocked, disgusted even.

The black and yellow cloth falling to the ground, they could see hideous scars. Scars, all across the Nekomata's body, from large to small, from side to side, from up to down, and in every way possible. Rias quickly turned on a light in the room as Kuroka, who finally stood still after being revealed to the devils, began to shake in fear and grief. Once the light was on, they could see the markings better. Skin deformed, as it succumbed to the agony of fire or acid. Her flesh being ripped from her body in the form of some chain or hook, the two devils could see it all.

"By the Devil Kings…" Rias whispered, beyond disbelief at what she was seeing.

"Kuroka… what… what happened to you…?"

At first, the cat had attacked Issei those two weeks ago in an attempt to hide the truth, but as the cat continued to shake and shiver now, the devils could see the salty liquid of tears forming in her eyes. This was what she didn't want others to see, to see the ugliness that was her body, of all the torment she had gone through when she had been younger. Finally, giving in to the horrors of being forced to remember those memories, the cat fell to her knees. She began to relapse, reliving the tales that shouldn't be told and curling up into a ball, seeking to protect herself from horrors unknown.

"Kuroka!" Issei yelled, quickly going to the cat's side as he put his hand on her shoulder, trying to wake her up from her nightmare. "Kuroka, wake up!" He screamed again, with Rias bolting out the door into the hallway, looking for Le Fay in an effort to help their friend. If it wasn't so severe, Issei could probably see the irony of almost living the same thing over again.

'_Protect…_ _Shirone…_'

Issei continued to shake Kuroka, trying to wake her as she shut herself off from the world. He began to blame himself having her go through this, as it was true that he had no clue what terrors she had gone through as her time as a Bishop.

'_Please… don't hurt…_'

Rias had managed to find Le Fay fairly quickly, who had gone to the side of her comrade immediately. Turning the Nekomata onto her side, she opened the cat's mouth to try to get anything out so she wouldn't gag on it. Laying a blanket on the cat as well, she did everything in her power to keep the cat from harming herself if she had a seizure as Issei took anything and everything away from within Kuroka's grasp.

'_Don't… go…_'

No matter how hard they tried, the trio of people weren't able to wake the poor cat up again. For several hours, they stayed by her side, uncaring of what time it was. For several hours, they tried to do whatever they could to wake her from her nightmare, but as time went on, nothing seemed to work.

'…_Forgive me… Shirone..._'

* * *

><p>Hours passed as Kuroka remained in a deep slumber, running away from the reality that she refused to recognize. Having heard of what had happened to her sister, Koneko had gone to Issei's room where her sister laid, wanting to take care of the demon cat that she had just begun to look up to once more. Allowing it, Rias and Issei went to her own room to sleep, so that he could get enough rest for the trial the next morning, with Koneko and Le Fay taking shifts in watching over the black cat. Despite being forced to go to bed though, it hadn't been an easy night for Issei, constantly tossing and turning as he blamed himself for the events that had unfolded.<p>

Around three in the morning, he had gotten up to go get a drink of water, hoping it would calm his nerves and allow him to get some amount of sleep. When he got into the hallway and began to head towards the stairway leading down to the first floor, he had begun to hear crying coming from his room. Normally, he would have investigated what was happening and why that person was crying, but from hearing it closely, he could make out that it had been Koneko crying, which struck him in the heart all the more. He wanted to tell himself that it had been accident, that he couldn't have known…

Too afraid to go inside and ask if she was alright, he forced himself to sit outside the door. He listened to the quiet sobbing of Koneko, imaging the droplets of tears running down her cheeks. Part of him wanted to run, to forget, but he knew he couldn't.

[You know you should go inside.]

Startled that Ddraig suddenly spoke, Issei managed to jump a little at the voice. He wanted to scream at the dragon for scaring him, but in an ironic way, believed that it was simply just the beginning of the torment he should have received for doing this.

"_I know…_" He whispered, leaning his head against the door as he stared at the doorknob.

[So why don't you…? Scared?]

Issei nodded.

[Of what?] Ddraig asked, but he got no response from the boy. [Coward…]

Issei smirked a bit. "_I am._"

An unexpected reaction from Ddraig, as instead of continuing to belittle the boy, decided to start laughing instead. Issei raised his brow as the dragon in his arm continued to laugh so heard, the boy began to worry if the Nekomata on the other side of the door was going to hear him. "_D-Ddraig! Shhh!_"

[Oh be quiet, you.] Ddraig snapped back, instantly stopping his laughing. If he was going to break Issei out of the shell he had put himself in and get the attention of the Nekomata inside, then he would do something that he had never done before. [You, the man who had said that he would become Harem King, who inadvertently ruined my life and made me go through hell and back with that damn nickname, and who has survived confrontations between Fallen Angels, high-ranking Devils, and even the human who wields the spear that killed God, is now afraid of a little girl?!]

Issei's brow furrowed as he began to speak a little louder. "I take offense to that, you know."

[Of what? Learning the truth? That you're an absolute coward? No, you know what you are? You're a-]

"Shut up!" Issei yelled, cutting off his friend from speaking any further. "You know nothing! You don't know what it's like to love a girl, but never be able to express your feelings because you're too afraid she might leave you instead! You don't know what it's like facing someone you care about, because you don't want to hurt them further since you're the source of their misery! You don't know what it's like…! You don't know…"

"Issei-senpai…?"

Having been too busy yelling at Ddraig, the boy had failed to notice the door he had been leaning against was open, and the head of Koneko had been poking out of the small crack that had been made. He took a few steps back, startled as if he had been snuck up on and spooked silly. He gulped, his back to the opposite wall as he looked at the white kitten staring back at him. Her eyes, he noticed, were blood-shot red, only furthering his conclusion that she had been crying, as was her cheeks being wet.

"K-Koneko… Yo…."

"… Did you come to see onee-sama?"

"Did I come…?" He asked, surprised that she would ask him such a thing? Wasn't she upset with him? Didn't she blame him for what he did to Kuroka…? "I… Yeah, I guess I did…" He reluctantly said, looking a bit more remorseful and taking his first steps towards the room as Koneko opened the door wider for him to come in.

The room was dark, with all sources of light having been turned off. All Issei could see, or what he was most focused on, was the silhouette figure in his bed, lying still on her side. Koneko took a seat next to the sleeping cat, grabbing ahold of the hand that she had been holding previously as she continued to look at her sister. It was evident that she had been hurting on the inside, as she looked at her sister as if she was on her death bed.

Issei decided to stand behind the Nekomata, not wanting to take a seat next to the Nekomata. He felt like he hadn't deserved to be in her presence, but deep down, he knew that Kuroka wouldn't want him to feel that way. "… Uhm, hey… I, uh…"

"Le Fay told me what happened, as she heard it from Rias…"

"I see…" Issei answered, rubbing the back of his neck. He was unsure of how he should go forward with the conversation, but he knew he had to apologize. "I, uhm… I-I want to say-" He was cut off though, as Koneko began to talk.

"Onee-sama and I… We've never been close."

"O-Oh?"

Koneko gave a small nod, continuing to stare at her sister. "She always lied to me, to keep me away from the truth while she took all the hardship… Stupid onee-sama…"

Although Issei had no idea what Koneko was talking about, he could see that whatever it was, was making her upset. She began to shiver, as tears began to form once more in her eyes. He surprised her though, by wrapping his arms around her, wanting, _needing_ to be there for her. In response, she grabbed hold of his hand with her own, squeezing it tight. "What happened, Koneko…?"

She shook her head, she didn't want to say. Rather than pushing it this time though, Issei let it go, as he didn't want a repeat of what happened to Kuroka to happen to Koneko. The two stayed there, huddled like that for nearly half-an-hour. In that time, the entire room had been quiet, with Issei hanging onto Koneko, and Koneko continuing to look at her sleeping sister. The black Nekomata meanwhile, in her unconscious state, was dreaming of the past, and all that she and her sister had been through.

* * *

><p>Kuroka remembered… The then nine-year-old Nekomata remembered a massive green field with large trees scattered about, the grass blowing gently in the wind underneath a large moon in the deep purple sky of the Underworld. For whatever reason, she and her sister had been on the move, going from one place to another when the two were unwanted, staying a day or two at most. It was that night though, that their lives had changed forever.<p>

Huddled next to each other near a small fire they had started, the younger sister slept peacefully underneath the leaves of one of the many trees. A colorless woolen blanket was wrapped around her to help her keep warm from the cold autumn night.

The older, more responsible Nekomata, did not sleep that night, but instead, stared at the fire. She had been worried, tremendously, for while it wasn't as harsh as the Human Realm, the winter was fast approaching for the two sisters, and they still had no place to call home. The two had lost their father due to disease in the winter before, and their mother soon after having run into humans who hunted various demons and youkai for the goods they could make out of them, having only managed to survive by hiding. The younger one, thankfully, had been asleep during that gruesome moment in their life, and Kuroka managed to piggy-back her younger sister to safety during the chaos. Though she knew she could not fault all humans for the action of a few, her heart would be painted black for a long time, and would only begin trusting them again until the arrival of a white dragon. But with them being low on food, and with no shelter, the older Nekomata knew that she would possibly have to turn towards a devil in the Underworld to help them. Though the devils were known to be greedy and self-centered, she had no choice in the matter.

The black one's thinking was interrupted with the muttering of her sleeping sister, calling out to her 'onee-sama' in her dream in a loving manner. It brought a small smile, but a smile nevertheless, to the older Nekomata. "I'm here for you, Shirone. I won't let anything bad happen to you…" She whispered, petting her sister's head, and began to fall asleep with her last family member in hopes of finding a new home in the morning.

The two would awake though, to the sound of a carriage going by early in the morning, as it seemed the new home had found them.

* * *

><p>When Kuroka came through from having slept for several hours, she had been startled. Instead of seeing the fields of green grass that laid before them the night before. Instead, she was met with the scene of being inside a carriage, her sister still leaning against her without the blanket, as an older gentleman sat across from her, smiling at her. Pale in skin and ripe in age, he was clothed in a rather noble looking attire, with a small goatee on his chin and a monocle to suit his image.<p>

"It seems you've woken up. That's very good." He said, continuing to smile at the young maiden as he crossed his leg on his lap. "Tell me, what is your name…?"

Kuroka, still having been massively afraid of this strange new person, did not answer him right away. Instead, feeling threatened by the man, folded the cat ears she had sticking out of her head backwards, as she did her best to cover her sister in an attempt to shield her. This simply caused the man to laugh though, as he held out his hand in an endeavor to be friendly.

"I promise you, I will not bite. I simply wish to know the name of you and your small sister, child." He said, but as Kuroka refused to answer and opted to glare at him instead, he sighed and leaned back in his seat. "I see, not the talkative type then… If you're wondering why you're in my carriage, then that answer is simple. I saw you and your sister out in the fields of my domain when I was riding home from the major city nearby. Whilst I can easily turn a blind eye to small orphans in my territory and let them freeze to death so that they may one day become fertilizer for the grass and trees, it would not sit right with me to know that I may have played a role in their deaths when I could have easily prevented it."

Looking out the window to see the fields go by, the man continued to speak, refusing to let silence take over. "I must say though, I'm quite surprised to see someone as young as yourselves traveling alone. What did you plan on doing should winter come or if you had run out of food…?" But once again, the Nekomata refused to speak. "I see then…"

With the cat refusing to speak the entire way, the devil was forced to sit in silence for the rest of his ride, the only sounds being the spinning of the wheels of the carriage, and the soft breathing of the white kitten snuggled up closely to the older sister. All three stayed like that for what seemed like hours on end. What was considered to be noon in the Underworld, the carriage had finally stopped in front of a massive gothic-style castle. While it hadn't been the biggest in the entirety of the Underworld, it was easily the largest one Kuroka had ever set her eyes on, having been so close to one for the first time in her life.

The devil was first to set foot out of the carriage, with a butler opening the door for the nobleman and welcoming him home. Thanking his servant for his services, he told the butler to prepare a room for the two girls, arguing that he was to take care of them without opposition. After all, who were they to complain for this gentleman for bringing them into his home?

The butler did as he was told and bowed to his master, going back into the massive castle and telling the other servants of the guests.

Kuroka, on the other hand, still refused to leave the comfort of the carriage. She didn't know what to expect from this strange man, for she felt like her prayers of a new home had been finally answered, but at the same time, something felt _very_ off. Why would the man choose to pick them up like this? It was obvious that he had been lying for feeling guilty about letting them sit out in the cold, as it wasn't the nature of devils to take care of others so easily. Not even the famous Gremory's were this kind to a couple of stray cats. So why was this man so different?

Regardless of what she thought, it seemed that she wasn't allowed to dwell on it for long, as one of the other servants had come out of the castle, coming to the carriage and asking them to get out so they could be shown the way to their new rooms. Kuroka unwillingly agreed to the servant's wishes, and began to nudge her sister awake from her slumber.

"Shirone… Shrione, wake up…"

"Nyah…?"

Shirone woke up slowly, rubbing one eye after the other and drearily looking around at her surroundings, her brain not yet processing the place she was in. Ignoring the calls of her sister, the white kitten went back to sleep, wanting to continue her sixteen hours of rest per-day habit. The Nekomata could only smile a bit, grateful that her sister was still innocent, naked to the world and its cruelty. Dragging the Nekomata out of the carriage, Kuroka managed to get her sister onto her back, following the servant as he carried the small bag they had traveled with so far, containing the wool blanket that Shirone had wrapped around her earlier, and the little bit of food they had left to eat.

As Kuroka followed the servant, she was surprised and even jumped back a little, her eyes falling on two giant creatures that seemed to have been pulling the carriage the entire time. Instead of the typical horses that most nobles used, this noble used creatures of Ancient Egypt, as they resembled something with the body of a cat, two giant bird-like wings growing out of their backs, and the heads of humans on top. The two creatures stared coldly at the poor cat the entire time as she made her way up to the castle, hoping to never cross paths with the creatures again.

Making her way through the castle, and sister still on her back, Kuroka was amazed at how spacious the interior of the castle had been. Remembering of old stories she had heard from her mother a long time ago, she wondered if this castle shared any resemblance to those of famous creatures such as Dracula or the Frankenstein's Monster. As she was forced to venture deeper into the heart of the castle though, her mind began to wander away from such thoughts of how old the castle was, and more on if the people who lived inside were trustworthy at all once more, for not once did she and servant come across a single soul within the castle.

After fifteen minutes of walking, the three beings finally stopped in front of a large metal door. Expecting to be thrown into some type of small, cramp and dark room, and be shown the true nature of the devil, she was surprised to say that she had been wrong. Instead what laid before her, was the exact opposite. Brightly lit, with wide and spacious room to roam, filled with furniture from the same time period as the castle, and most of all, a large warm bed awaiting for her and her sister in the far corner. It had been too good to be true.

"Dinner shall be ready in a few hours, where Master Azhul will be expecting your company. Please do not disappoint my master's wishes." The servant rudely mentioned, throwing the bag of their precious belongings on the bed as if it were a pile of trash. It was obvious by the mere hostile aura he was giving off that the servant did not wish to be in the same company of the two sisters, not that it mattered much to Kuroka, as she felt very much the same way.

Gently placing her younger sibling onto the bed, the black cat began to go through their things, making sure that nothing was missing. Much to their luck as well, it seemed that the one named 'Lord Azhul' had not left anything behind, as she took out the wool blanket from the dirty old bag and lightly placed it on her sister. Once she made sure that the younger one was properly covered with the blanket, she too decided to get on the bed, and begin sleeping away the day. If she were to find the truth out about this devil and what he was up to, then the best thing she could do was to be as alert as possible. In order to do that though, she would need much rest.

* * *

><p>A day passed, and then another, and then another. Before long, the Nekomata had lost all count of how long the two had been at the castle ruled under Baron Azhul. Though he seemed to have saved the two from certain death in the winter, Kuroka couldn't help but feel like she had been placed in a cage, waiting for the day when she could set free once again, as the two were never allowed to leave the castle grounds. That feeling only deepened as the years went by, and soon after becoming an adult at the age of thirteen, would she begin to find out the reason why she and her sister had been brought to the castle.<p>

Amongst the days they were forced to stay in the castle, Kuroka noticed something strange within the gothic building. Just like she and her sister, the master of the castle had brought in _others_, but, unlike they, these people seemed to be allowed to leave, or so she was told. Simply a few days after they were brought in, the new 'recruits' she had heard one of the servants call them, would vanish into thin air, never to be seen again. Though she was told of stories of the 'recruits' leaving in the night, she hadn't believed them at all, as the scent of blood always filled the halls of the castle. Because of this, day by day, she feared what would happen to her and her sister.

One night, the host and two guests sat at the dinner table and enjoyed their meals, the Lord sat at the end of the table, the two creatures that Kuroka had come to hate were at his sides, staring into the hall in an unnerving way. Lord Azhul looked up from his plate and spoke to Kuroka. It was strange though, as the only other time he had _ever_ spoken to the girls, despite having taken them in so long ago, was the first night they had been brought to his castle, where he questioned them more about who they were.

"Kuroka… would you be a dear and mind coming to my study after dinner? I wish to speak to you about some… _opportunities_, that I believe will help benefit us both."

Animalistic instincts telling her to decline the offer, the older sister knew she had no choice but to agree. While he personally hadn't harmed her in any way, the servants of the castle did otherwise. Fortunately, it was nothing too severe, just a light spanking here and there after being found somewhere she wasn't supposed to be, or accidentally destroying priceless art. That didn't mean she wasn't too frightened to reject the Baron and find out what the punishment would be for doing so though.

With a somber nod, she agreed.

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes after the master had left the table, Kuroka had managed to find the study he spoke of, with a little help from numerous servants on the way. She had put Shirone to bed early, telling her that she would be back to fall asleep with her soon enough, and wishing her a good night's rest.<p>

Standing outside the large wooden door of the room, she couldn't help but feel intimidated. She had read things from the library the castle had, things she wished she never knew of when it came to a woman being invited to a man's room. She prayed to any deity that was listening to not let that be the situation. With a deep breath, she knocked on the door, waiting for a reply from within.

Though it was faint, she was able to hear the sounds of something sweet inside, yet… It was the sound of a piano, slowly melting away her fears. The sound of it was peaceful, yet, a tone of sadness could be heard coming from it, as if the pianist playing it was deeply troubled by something. She was never the articulate one when it came such fancy music, but _this_…

The very thing that had distracted her from waiting for a reply, only grew louder, as the door to the chambers holding the peaceful music swung wide open, revealing the master of the castle in silk robe, holding a small glass of wine in his otherwise free hand. The sound of the music began to pick up in a more cheerful tone as the Baron gave a welcoming smile to the young cat. Moving out of the way to let her see inside, he invited for her to come in, which she did, hesitantly.

A typical study from what she could see. A large oak desk, a fancy seat behind it, with two other oak chairs to match the desk. A large bookcase off to one side, a fireplace on the opposite, and some type of strange device she had seen before in one of the corners, producing the music she had recently been acquainted with. With that being said, she had been gestured to sit at one of the chairs that were facing the seat that the Baron sat in. Kuroka managed to let out a sigh of relief when she noticed that neither of the Sphinxes she had come to know them as were not in the room.

"I'm pleased that you managed to come, Kuroka. After all, I believe that there is much to discuss." Lord Azhul said, sitting back down in his own seat after Kuroka sat in hers, sitting upright and in a respectful manner, as she was taught to do so the moment she had come to this place. Putting the glass aside, he folded his fingers together, looking at the cat in an unsettling way. Again, the cat's instincts told her to run away, but knew she couldn't.

"How long have I've come to know you and your sister, Kuroka…? Four years now?"

She nodded, refusing to answer verbally. It seemed to satisfy the Lord nonetheless though.

"Four years… Have you grown to come accustomed to this place? Do you enjoy it here?"

She opened her mouth, wanting to reply. She wanted to tell him the truth, that she hated it, that she felt trapped, imprisoned. She wanted to go outside, to go and never turn back with her sister at her side. She wanted to say this, but she knew it would mean throwing away the only thing keeping her and her sister alive for all these years. "… Yes, Lord Azhul…"

"Still quiet and one to keep to yourself, even after these four years…" He mentioned under his breath. Without asking another question, he ducked underneath his desk, pulling out on the many drawers within it to fetch something. As he did so, the music began to pace even further and became more sporadic, catching the attention of Kuroka, who began to stare at the machine that had produced said music. When he popped back up from underneath the desk, holding two tiny navy blue chess pieces, a smile graced his lips as he looked at Kuroka, fascinated with the antique record player in the corner. "Do you like it?"

Startled by the sudden sound of the master speaking, Kuroka turned back towards him, redness growing within her cheeks. She nodded a few times, causing the Lord to chuckle under his breath as he continued to look at the cat. "Beautiful, isn't it…?" Again, she nodded.

Getting up from his seat, he walked around the desk and began to make his way towards the record player. "Piano Sonata Number Fourteen by Ludwig Von Beethoven. Also known as the 'Moonlight Sonata', it had been dedicated to a pupil of his by the name of 'Countess Guilietta Guicciardi'… A damn shame too, having never been able to hear the beauty that was this piece of art he had created… I tend to play this, dear Kuroka, when I want to remind myself, of the harshness of this world."

Gently placing his hand on the record, he managed to stop the delightful music from playing, and looked back at the cat. "Enlighten me, Kuroka. Why do you think Mr. Beethoven would have created such _grandeur_ art, such _divine_ music… if he was deaf? If he knew that he was more than likely never able to hear it for himself in its true form…?"

Knowing nothing of the man he spoke of, Kuroka could only shake her head, hoping to satisfy the Baron with a simple answer. He smiled, nodding as he acknowledged the cat's inability to answer. "I see… I believe he did it, because while he knew that he himself could not hear the beauty of the form he had created, that someone dear to him, someone he wished to be noticed by, would hear it… That is all he ever wanted, for the feelings in the deepest reaches of his heart. And yet… that love would never be requited…"

Kuroka stared at the man for a few moments, not knowing where he had been going with his analogy. As if he was in his own little world, the Baron continued to stare into blank space. His hand tightened in a ball, something on his mind that was troubling him, though the cat never knew what.

When the master had said nothing for several minutes, he suddenly snapped out of his trance, as though he knew he had been acting strange. "Forgive me, Kuroka, it's just, sometimes I tend to remember things I wish to forget. That has nothing to do with you though, not yet…" He said the last bit under his breath as he walked back to his desk, placing the two chess pieces in front of him, and in front of Kuroka. "Do you know what these are, Kuroka?"

"… Chess pieces, nyah…"

He nodded, his smile never leaving his face. "Very good, Kuroka, very good. _However_! They are something _more_ than just your regular chess pieces. Have you ever heard of the term, 'Evil Pieces' dear child?" He asked the young cat, who could only answer by shaking her head. In response, the Lord's smile had wavered a bit, but went back to that welcoming smile he hoped to give her. "I see, I suppose that is no surprise. After all, these past four years, while I may have taken you both in, I have yet to give you a real education… That is not important though. What _is_ important is what I teach you here tonight. Do you know how devils are made, Kuroka?"

Kuroka's cheeks lit up once more at the sudden and perverted question. Unfortunately forcing herself to answer, she nodded, wanting to look away from the man, hoping that nothing would happen afterwards. "So you _do_ know of the Evil Pieces then?" He asked, but she shook her head again, unsure what he meant. When she gave him the answer to his question, it had taken him a few moments to give out a hearty laugh, genuinely embarrassed for having asked such a question.

Having calmed down some, the master wiped away a tear from his eye, before going on to explain what he meant.

"Forgive me, Kuroka, I should have put more thought into what I was saying. What I meant was, do you know how _reincarnated_ devils are made…? No? Well, simply put, after the last Great War, we devils were given the ability to reincarnate and create servants using _these_." He emphasized, pointing to the chess pieces in front of him. "These are Evil Pieces, Kuroka. These are what are used to create new devils, and they, are what I wish to discuss with you. Do you know why I brought you in with your sister four years ago, Kuroka?"

Once more, she shook her head.

"Because, Kuroka, you, and your sister, are _special_. You two, who are of the Nekomata race, are something beyond what others of your race could ever hope to achieve. Yes, when I saw you two in that field that day, I _knew_. I knew that you are of the special Nekoshou race."

"…Nekoshou, nyah?"

Lord Azhul nodded. "Yes, Kuroka, the Nekoshou. They are a race of Nekomata that can far exceed the magical capabilities of their brethren. I tell you this, Kuroka, for I have a favor to ask of you." He said, pushing the chess pieces closer to the cat. "Kuroka… Will you become my Bishop? Will you reincarnate and become my servant? Do so, and I promise you, you shall be rewarded greatly for your services…"

The cat stared at the pieces, then back to the aged man. She had heard stories of what happened to the servants who had disobeyed the Lord through the grapevines, though she did not know if any of them were true. If they were true, then it could very well mean her death if she was to ever disobey him. On other hand… "What of Shirone, nyah…?"

"What about her?"

"What would happen to her?" She asked again. After all, nothing else mattered so long her sister was involved. If it meant she could continue protecting her beloved sister, then-

"You care deeply about your sister… Tell you what, Kuroka. Become my servant, and I promise you, your sister shall never worry about anything ever again. Deal?"

Wanting to oppose, the cat opened her mouth. Nothing came out though, as she knew this was a massive chance of a lifetime. It was true that he had saved them from death those four years ago, and if he could give her the power she needed to protect Shrione, then it was possible that they could one day escape from this hell. She bit her lip, refusing to object, and nodded. The smile that had been on the master's face grew even larger, as he picked up the two Bishop pieces that were on his desk and walked around it once more, standing high above Kuroka.

"This will only take a second, I promise."

* * *

><p>"No! Nyah!"<p>

"S-Shirone, please, listen t-"

"No! I don't want you to go, onee-sama!"

"Shirone…"

For becoming a part of Lord Azhul's peerage, Kuroka was to be relocated within the deeper levels of the castle, areas that both Nekomatas had once been forbidden to go into. As such, it would mean that Shirone would be left alone within the room that she had always shared with her sister.

Kuroka looked back at the servant who was being forced to attend to her for the move, looking, _pleading_ to take her beloved sister with her. "Can't she ju-"

"I'm sorry, Lady Kuroka, but the Lord wishes for his peerage to all live in the same place, with no outsiders allowed. Besides, I think it would be for the best that Lady Shirone were to stay here, as the other members living in the deeper part of the castle are, shall we say, _unique_…" The servant answered, trying to find the best word without directly insulting the other Pieces of their master's peerage.

Kuroka was saddened. Had she ever known that she was to be separated from her last remaining family member, she would have never accepted being Azhul's Bishop. If only she would have known, if only she had asked more questions…

Kuroka pulled Shrione in for the tightest hug she could give, crying as she would have to say goodbye. She didn't want to let go, to continue hugging the little kitten for all of time if it meant that they would continue being together, but now…

"_I promise you, Shirone, I _will _come back for you_." Kuroka whispered in her sister's ear, giving her one last tight hug before having to let go forever. If she was to become strong, strong enough to protect Shrione from any and all dangers, then if that meant giving up seeing her for a little while… She did not want to think about it, as her thirteen year old mind just couldn't get over the fact that she would be separated once again. It was far too much for her.

As she let go, she could feel her sister try to pull her back in, wanting for her to stay. She did everything in her power to restrain herself from caving in and refusing to become Azhul's Bishop right then and there, even if it meant forcing the pieces she had received the night before out of her.

It was not long that she got to spend time with her sister though, as the feeling of someone tugging the collar of her clothes was felt. The servants began to drag Kuroka away, while others held the sister back from running after her. The two screamed each other's names out, wanting, _needing_ to go back to one another. It was all for naught though, as soon enough, the two sisters would vanish from each other's sights, not able to see each other for the longest time.

* * *

><p>Thus began the living hell that was Kuroka's life. So long as Shirone was safe, and that Lord Azhul would keep his promise of keeping her safe, then Kuroka would do all that she could to survive the harsh training that was being his Bishop. Unfortunately, she had no clue what that training entailed.<p>

That was the least of her concerns though, as the deeper she went into the castle, a scent she wish she would never smell permeated through the air. Blood, just like she had once thought before, but something more with it. Deeper and deeper into the halls she went, that putrid scent became stronger. It was the scent of rotting carcasses…

It wasn't the only strange thing though, as the servant who had been escorting her stopped short of an iron gate within the hallway they had been in. Having never been in this part of the castle before, Kuroka had no clue what lied behind that gate. All she could hear, was the faint roaring of what sounded to be a large crowd, cheering at someone, or perhaps _something_.

"… What is this place, nyah?" She asked, looking up at the servant who seemed to stand still at the door, as if he was expecting something to happen.

"This, dear Lady, is where your training shall begin."

"… Here?" She asked, pointing to the door, which the servant nodded at.

"Indeed. You are to take place in a duel of sorts, and should you be victorious, you shall begin your true training as a Bishop of Lord Azhul's peerage. Should you impress him enough, and perhaps he shall show you in the ways of the Necromancer."

"… And if I fail? Should I lose…?"

"… Run."

With that said, Kuroka could feel her back be pushed hard, as the iron gate in front of her creaked hard in swinging open rapidly, the sound of cheering growing exponentially. Everything going too fast, the cat was quick to find out that the moment she had been pushed into the corridor that lead to certain doom, the gate behind had closed shut with a resounding 'boom', cutting all ways for her to escape. She banged on the door, hoping that someone would answer and she would escape from this, but reality is a harsh mistress, as the truth sank in. She was tricked, and said trick could very well end up ending her life.

All she could do now was to pray, to wish some godly deity out there had been listening, and that they would protect her from the horrors unknown. Turning around and facing the only way out of the lightless tunnel, she gulped hard in anticipating the worst. The stench of blood and other bodily fluids only became stronger with each step she took, as she forced herself to swallow the bile that had been climbing up her throat, threatening to take away the last bit of sanity she would have for this place.

Having reached the end of the dark tunnel, she had been quickly blinded by the brightness of the next room. Shielding her eyes from any damage, they quickly adjusted to find the source of where all the blood and stench was coming from, as what she found herself in was a giant coliseum. Spikes covered the walls all around, numerous bodies attached to them as helpless victims were pierced through, left the bleed to death in a most painful way. Piles of bodies were strewn about on the hard, metallic floor, rusted away from all the crimson liquid that had bathed it for who knows how long, as flies made homes of the disposed carcasses. Looking up she could see that there was the open air was in fact sealed by a large iron cage, preventing any escape for any of the 'members of the peerage', should they choose to live instead of dying in a useless manner.

"**Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to this special event!**"

Kuroka looked up, through the cage, in an attempt to find the person who was talking. It was the voice of her so-called 'master', and the one responsible for what she was going through. If she was to survive this, and if she were to ever get her hands on him, she would surely kill him for all of this.

"**Tonight, I bring you a remarkable treat. For tonight, shall be the debut of two of my finest creations!**" Suddenly, if she hadn't been blinded by the light before, she was now, as a giant spotlight rained down upon Kuroka, highlighting her to the entire crowd of devils above. "**In one corner, we have my newest Bishop, Kuroka! Four years ago, I happened to find this fine specimen on the side of the road with her younger sister, and four years ago I brought them in. Now, at the age of thirteen, Kuroka's training shall begin, starting with this event! Give a round of applause for the young girl!**"

Devils screamed and clapped as Lord Azhul introduced the black Nekomata. All she wanted to do at the moment was shrink away, never to be seen again.

"**And in the other corner, weighing in at two-hundred and twenty-six kilograms! Sewn from the bodies of the worthless contestants from yesterday's batch, and held together using my very own special brand of magic, I give you, Patches!**"

Kuroka looked towards where the light had begun to shine, only to lay her eyes on a creature most gruesome and hideous.

Just like the Baron had said, the creature she saw was the color of a sickly green and yellow, disease-ridden bodies holding together a beast of unimaginable horror. Its beady little eyes focusing on what it would consider prey in front of it, in one deformed hand held a meat cleaver of unreasonable size, and in the other hand, a giant meat hook connected to a steel chain. With its entire lower jaw missing and a rotten tongue dangling where the jaw would be, the creature tried to speak, if only to try to respond to its master, only to make gurgling sounds in the end.

It was the ultimate demise, and something that Kuroka wanted no part of.

Before she could continue looking at the creature, the sound of a bell rang through the coliseum, starting what could very well be her last night alive.

"**Patches! KILL!**"

* * *

><p><strong>I don't think I mentioned this before, but the initial plan I have for this story is making entire volumes and then releasing the chapters one day at a time, almost like the actual LN. This for two reasons. <strong>

**First off, this makes it easier on me as I don't feel like pressuring myself into making more and more chapters just to get onto the next chapter and eventually lose all interest in the project simply because it becomes more of a chore than something that actually feel like its fun to write it.**

**Second, and more importantly (to me at least), If I **_**do**_** lose interest at any time, I've at least written enough (for myself) that I feel like I've at least accomplished **_**something**_**, even if it's a bit of a cliffhanger. I **_**hope**_** I don't end up doing this, as I have the entire story planned out already, and just need to get the writing done.**

**As such, for those who thought that I will be releasing another chapter any time soon, you're unfortunately mistaken. **

**If you are interested though, I do post the unedited versions of these chapters on the Animesuki Forum "Highschool DxD" Social Group Fanfiction thread, as well as sometimes spoilers for the upcoming chapter if I feel like it. Google Animesuki Forums, and go to the "Highschool DxD" Social Group under the "Community" tab.**

**All that being said, hope to see you all in volume 2! And I do apologize for the cliffhanger…**


	6. Oppai Dragon Update

_**Hey guys, Poodicus here.**_

_**I'm making this update here to tell you that I'm not dead, the story is still on-going, but due to the way I'm writing it (with releasing it via volumes and not separate chapters), it's taking a much longer time than I would have liked it to. At least, that's what I've been telling myself, but I've been on "Volume 2, Life 1" for the past two months or so, more or less due to the fact that I'm in the middle of trying to find another job while working at the one I despise, it being winter and I tend to write less in the winter because it's freezing at night and that's when I tend to write to the point where my fingers become numb and I go to bed just to stay warm, and being invited into the Alpha of Blizzard Entertainment's new MOBA-type game, "Heroes of the Storm" and playing the ever-living hell out of it (Along with WoW:Warlords). So yeah, I've been doing other things other things other than writing, and I apologize for that.**_

_**To make up for it, here's the first half of the fight scene I've written at the beginning of the chapter (which is shorter than I'd like to admit).**_

_**I hope you enjoy it, and I hope to start working on Life 2 very soon.  
><strong>_

_**Also, try refraining from leaving a comment here. Not because I don't enjoy listening to the feedback you guys leave me, but because if you leave a comment now, it won't delete when I end up deleting this update to replace it with the actual chapter, and therefore, your comment will forever be stuck being something about the update, and not the actual chapter. If you want to comment, would suggest PMing me. Just putting out there.**_

* * *

><p>"<strong>Patches! KILL!<strong>"

Those were the words that had left her master's mouth, signifying to her that he indeed intended for her to be sentence to death in this pit. Had she nothing to live for, she may have well embraced death long ago, rather than to be some sort of gruesome spectacle for the devil masses.

The loud 'thumps' on the metallic floor grew closer and closer, as Kuroka looked up, focused. Seeing the massive hulk of an abomination against God quickly gain distance on her, the Nekomata knew she had to think up of something quick in order to survive this fight, as well as learn how to defeat the beast in front of her. Not once in her entire life had she ever used magic, nor knew of any, and with no armor to protect herself, she chose the only choice she had in the situation. Running. Ripping the dress at the legs that she wore, she got ready to set her plan into motion.

Once the unholy creature made its way in front of Kuroka, it raised its right arm high above its head, tightly gripping the meat cleaver it had as it swung downward, hoping to end this fight in one swing.

It failed, as Kuroka used her feline heritage to jump out of danger at the last second, hoping the creature would realize too slowly that it had missed. The scent from the beast was more than enough to make the Nekomata nauseous to her stomach, but she forced the remains of her lunch back down as she slid across the bloody and rusty floor. She didn't have too much time to think about other things though, as Patches made its next move by swinging its left arm around, letting the meat-hook and chain fall out of its grasp. Nearly breaking her spine in half attempting to dodge the vile hook, time seemed to have slowed down for her, as she watched the stage lights above bounce off the pewter-coated curled metal.

Slipping on the blood below, Kuroka hit the back of her head hard on the cold ground, luckily only giving her a minor headache and slowing down her reaction time as she narrowly rolled out of the way of another strike from Patches, stomping down on the ground with its massive foot. Having felt like she put enough space between the two, she rolled onto her stomach and swiftly pushed herself off the ground, missing another swing of the meat-hook that had been sent her way. Having ignored the commentary that was being said throughout the beginning of the fight, Kuroka also pretended to not hear the crowd that had begun to boo after no blood was spilt.

Taking a single second to look up at the seats that the devils comfortably sat in, Kuroka spotted a timer, nine minutes slowly ticking away. Thinking that once it hit zero, and that this nightmare would perhaps end, Kuroka began to devise a plan. If she could get into one of the body piles, she could perhaps survive long enough to not have to fight. She ran towards the closest pile, making the fatal mistake of ignoring her surroundings.

The feeling of piercing cold metal, digging into her flesh, as she was suddenly lifted off her feet and thrown backwards, flying through the air as the hook carved out of her flesh and flew her into a pile on the other side of the arena. With having never even felt such a pain in her life, Kuroka let out a blood-curdling scream, only to be drown out by the cheers of joy coming from outside the ring.

The hot liquid that was her blood, the burning feeling of having her flesh ripped right from her body, she wanted it to end. She lowered her eye lids, not wanting to see the beast that would take her life, as she could hear the thumps of its feet drawing closer. If this was what she was going to suffer through, it this was what she was going have to do to become Azhul's Bishop, then she may have very well just give up right there.


End file.
